The Dog & The Doe
by nightshoes
Summary: He's the loyal companion, she's the haughty redhead. His best friend's in love with her, but what if he might be, too? A few fleeting moments with the girl who is most definitely out of bounds means Sirius Black must make a choice: James, or Lily?
1. Prologue: September the First, 1971

_A/N: I started this over a year ago, I think, without even knowing which direction it was going in or what the plot was - or even what year I decided the Marauders would be in when I wrote the fic. Now I recently finished the whole thing, converted it into Word and saw that it consists of 209 pages! Crazy, crazy times. But anyway, here is the prologue and I'll be publishing the first chapter, too, so that you know when the fic is actually set. It doesn't have a complete mastermind of a plot, but I wrote it for the pure enjoyment of it, and I hope you'll like it if you take the time to read it. I also wanted to try a different ship other than L/J, and found that I quite liked writing from Sirius's POV, but I think I'll always ship Lily and James! R&R please. MWPP._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Sirius Black. Nor do I own Hogwarts or characters belonging to J.K Rowling. I just own my plot, and some original characters I created._

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

**September the First, 1971**_  
><em>

Sirius Black stared longingly out of the large, dirt-encrusted window. Trees, wide squares of golden fields and long, rickety picket fences flashed past in an earthy blur. He gazed out into the distance; but still, he could see nothing up ahead except more forests and, just on the horizon, the bold iron grey mountains. He shifted back into his seat and peered at the half-eaten pumpkin pasty lying in a brown wrapper on the table.  
>'So?' said the dark haired boy sitting next to him, wearing round glasses and an eager grin. 'What d'you think it'll be like? Eh? My dad says it's bigger than you think...you could fit fifty Quidditch pitches into the Great Hall, he says...'<p>

'I don't know,' Sirius replied truthfully, 'all my father told me is that he'd disown me if...'

'What?' asked James Potter, his jaw dropping in surprise. 'If what?'

Sirius hesitated. 'Nah, I don't want to jinx it,' he said, shrugging casually, trying to laugh it off. But it was true, he thought sadly. What if he wasn't in Slytherin? What would his father say? Or, possibly even worse, his _mother_? Would he be shunned like his great-uncles and cousins and so many others before him?

James opened his mouth to say something, but the shy-looking boy with light brown hair and a kind smile spoke up. 'I think we're nearly there,' he said quietly. 'I can see the mountains clearer now.'

'Oh, yeah, look, Remus is right,' James pointed out, getting up from his seat and brushing crumbs off of his sweater. 'Better change into our robes, then...' He turned to the luggage compartment to locate his suitcase and was just about to heave it from the rack when the compartment door slid open. James gave a start and turned to see who had just entered. It was a small, pretty girl with a shiny waterfall of long red hair and a miserable expression. Her bright green eyes were red and sore and her eyelashes sparkled with tears.

'Can I come and sit here?' she mumbled, turning away shortly afterwards to wipe her eyes. Evidently, she did not want the boys to know she had been crying.

James, who was stood up, was the first to speak. 'Yeah, 'course,' he said hoarsely, as though he was suffering from a sore throat; he coughed. 'Erm...sit next to Remus...hey, are you okay?'

'I'm fine,' she said firmly, with a touch of defiance as she took her seat. She smiled at Remus next to her, who smiled shyly back and then gave Sirius and James a terrified glance as though he did not know what to do. It was as if they all expected her to explode like some sort of time bomb; they watched her warily, occasionally sneaking a look to see if she was crying again, debating in silent gestures whether to offer her some leftover food. But all she did was press her head against the window pane and sit there without making a sound, her face covered by her long hair. Eventually they settled back into their state of reading, excitedly chatting or swapping Chocolate Frog cards. It was like the strange red-haired girl wasn't in their midst at all. But Sirius was watching James carefully, and noticed that he kept staring at her when he thought no-one was looking, with a strange glint in his eyes, as if he yearned to know who she was.

It was not until half an hour later when something happened to again disturb the boys' rowdy conversation. The compartment door slid open a second time and in walked a sullen, black-haired boy already dressed in school robes, who appeared not to notice three of the eleven-year-olds and sat down opposite the crying girl instead, next to Sirius. Sirius shifted farther along the row of seats so he was closer to James and gave the other two a look of perplexed amusement, his grey eyes wide. Remus gave him a smile to reassure him but James only had eyes for the unsmiling and shabby-looking boy who was attempting to talk to the red-haired, nameless stranger.

'I don't want to talk to you,' she said, pushing her red hair out of her eyes to reveal her freckled, saddened face. Sirius thought she had definitely been crying since she entered the compartment and sat down.

'Why not?' said the black-haired boy indignantly.

'Tuney h – hates me. Because we saw that letter from Dumbledore.' She looked down at her hands, evidently feeling ashamed.

'So what?' replied the boy shortly.

'So she's my sister!' the girl replied in anger.

'She's only a – ' started the boy, but he seemed to realise what he was about to say would have been some sort of insult, and so he withdrew it and looked at the floor instead, searching for words to say. The girl turned to the window to wipe her eyes and appeared not to have heard him.

Sirius chanced a glance at the others; they, like he, had been watching the whole conversation. James was glaring at the boy with black hair in deep disgust.

'But we're going!' cried the sullen boy, in almost a whisper. 'This is it! We're off to Hogwarts!'

The red-haired girl nodded as she wiped her eyes again, ducking her head so that no-one could see; she gave the black-haired boy a watery smile. He looked around the compartment; Sirius and the other two promptly turned away and returned to their book or, in James's case, a Cauldron Cake, as if they had no interest at all in what had just happened.

'You'd better be in Slytherin.'

'Slytherin?' Sirius heard James say to the left of him. He turned; James had rammed the rest of the Cauldron Cake into his mouth and was looking at the black-haired boy as if he could not believe what he had just heard. 'Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?' James grinned at Sirius, his brown eyes twinkling.

Sirius looked back at James, unsmiling, not sharing the joke. 'My whole family have been in Slytherin,' he said in a monotone. He didn't really want to tell anyone this, especially not the odd black-haired boy who he felt had just barged in on their conversation to upset the poor crying girl again, but he decided that people had to know sooner or later.

James gawked and even Remus looked up from _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 _to raise his eyebrows in astonishment. 'Blimey, and I thought you seemed alright!' said James in utter surprise.

Sirius grinned; he knew now that at least James wouldn't think any less of him, as he feared he would.

'Maybe I'll break the tradition,' Sirius mused. 'Where are you heading, if you've got the choice?'

James answered quickly as if he had it ready. He threw his hand high into the air, brandishing an invisible sword. Out of the corner of his eye, Sirius thought he saw the black-haired boy smirk a little.

'_Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart! _Like my dad,' continued James.

This time the black-haired boy definitely smirked; he made a small coughing noise that, quiet though it was, made everyone in the compartment turn to stare at him. Sirius eyed him with annoyance. What was wrong with Gryffindor? Why was he even here, anyway?

James said what Sirius was thinking. 'Got a problem with that?' he said loudly, defiantly.

'No...' answered the boy with a hint of sarcasm. 'If you'd rather be brawny than brainy - '

'Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?' interrupted Sirius with a thrill of anger, he just _had_ to say it; really, what was his problem?

James's grimace turned into a grin. He sat back on his seat and roared with laughter amid cries of 'good one, Sirius!' and 'didn't see that one coming, eh?'. Remus chuckled a little; the redhead however, flushed and her brow furrowed in anger and annoyance. She threw looks at James and Sirius in turn, who were both still laughing and slapping hands, and then stood up with an air of grandeur.

'Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment,' she said loudly, and at this James sat up properly to look at her with a grin still etched upon his face.

'Ooooooh!' James imitated in a high-pitched lofty voice. '_Tetchy_...' Sirius joined in too, laughing as Severus, the black-haired boy, passed them. James stuck his foot out at a feeble attempt to trip him up; Severus stumbled and followed the red-headed girl, clearly wanting to get out as soon as possible.

'See ya, Snivellus!' James called, smirking at the cruel nickname of his own creation, and the thin, dark shadow on the other side of the compartment slammed the door shut.


	2. One: Four Years Later

_A/N: So this is the first chapter, which sets the scene and the context, etc. It's the start of their fifth year and Lily and James have established their dislike for each other. But secretly James is in love. And also James is Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team; I know J.K.R said that he played Chaser but somehow I can't imagine James playing any other position. R&R please!_

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><p><strong>One<strong>

**Four Years Later**_  
><em>

'Oi! You! Black! Get up and get downstairs. Kreacher's got breakfast ready!'

Sirius stirred; his mind was foggy, blurry, disturbed from dreams, and he was awake, yet his eyes did not open.

'OI! I said get up!' said the voice that had awoken him. It was angry and edgy. Annoyed. There was suddenly a bang and Sirius heard his door burst open; however, his mind was still half-asleep and did not have time to register it until –

'_Aguamenti!_'

'Argh...' Sirius spluttered as a shower of ice-cold water hit his face with hammer-blow force. He sat up instantly, his eyes blinking open. He was lying in his double bed with water dripping down his face and shirt. His bedspread was soaked. He could feel the cold water had already gone onto his legs and pyjama trousers.

'Idiot.' A voice smirked.

He already knew the culprit; he did not have to look to his left and see who had cast the spell. They were running downstairs anyway, judging by the heavy footfalls.

'REG!' Sirius roared. '_You're not supposed to use magic outside of school!'_

'I can do what I like, scummy Gryffindor,' Sirius's younger brother Regulus shouted back. 'Now get down here or else I'll get Kreacher to beat you with his rolling pin again, haha!'

Sirius sighed and started changing out of his soaked pyjama bottoms and t-shirt into his ordinary clothing. If it was _him _who'd done underage magic, he would have gotten a beating, but no, because it was _Regulus, _little Regulus, whom everyone adored, it was okay. No-one liked Sirius, the outcast, the worthless Gryffindor. No, it was all about Regulus. No wonder Sirius looked forward to every September the first. Summer holidays were the worst – six weeks with his so perfectly pureblood family. Sirius despised the lot of them.

Now in clean, dry clothes, he paused to read the letter his best friend James had sent a few days ago. It gave him hope that they would soon see each other on the Hogwarts Express today.

_Sirius,_

_Hope you're okay. It won't be long now until we're going back to school. Did you hear, Moony's been made a Prefect! Apparently his parents are dead proud. Well, we all knew it would happen. Ironic, isn't it, how he has to help the little firsties to behave and yet we're sneaking out breaking rules all the time? Hilarious._

_Anyway, what have you been up to this holiday? Sorry we haven't seen each other much. You'll have to stay at mine for the Christmas holidays, if your parents are okay with it. My mum says you're welcome any time._

_You'll never guess what! I've got a Cleansweep Five! Dad got it me for doing well in my exams. He says he was saving it for next year, after I've done my O., but to be honest I don't know how many I'm going to get, so I told him to give it to me now so I can at least have it for a while. I was dead pleased. It's amazing, it's got pinpoint accuracy, you'll have to have a go on it at school. Are you going to try out this year? You keep putting it off, but you'd make a brilliant Beater, you know, I'll put in a good word with Ernie Abbott. Maybe Gryffindor will win Quidditch Cup this time, eh?_

_I went to Italy for a week this holiday, too, and the wizards there are so cool. I learnt all about these masquerade parties that they used to have and it was dead boring but Dad said it was useful stuff. I got this mask with a giant bird beak, it looks really good. I also got a new Sneakoscope made from Venetian glass. But the bird mask is way better._

_Hope your family aren't giving you too much of a hard time, you scumbag Gryffindor! Haha. See you soon._

_James_

Sirius sighed. It had been six weeks since he'd seen his best friend. His parents weren't so keen on letting him go and stay with his 'reckless Gryffindor friend'. He stared up at the scarlet and gold banners that decorated his room, emblazoned with the faded, roaring lion. The banners that his family so disliked, and tried so hard to take down, and hide away the opinionated unworthy scummy Gryffindor that embarrassed the proud pureblood ancestors –

'SIRIUS, YOU IDIOT, BREAKFAST'S BEEN ON THE TABLE FOR TEN MINUTES NOW. MOTHER SAYS SHE'LL LET KREACHER BEAT YOU IF YOU DON'T GET DOWN HERE.'

Sirius took that as his cue to leave. He dropped the letter and hurried downstairs for eggs and bacon, served by the most miserable and disgusted house-elf that Sirius had ever encountered. He, like the others, also despised him for his House colours that set him apart and his non-pureblood opinions.

'Don't, Kreacher, you'll put me off my breakfast,' Sirius muttered, shoving the tiny elf away as he picked up his knife and fork. Kreacher grumbled insults as he pattered away to serve coffee.

'Sirius,' said Walberga Black sternly. 'You have your school equipment, I trust?'

'Yes, Mother,' he replied, sighing inwardly.

'Good. Now hurry up, the car will be here soon. Get your trunk and your books after breakfast. Be back downstairs in five minutes. Do you hear me?'

'Yes, Mother.'

Walberga turned her elegant head to Regulus, who was sitting next to Sirius wolfing his breakfast down excitedly. 'Regulus,' she said kindly. 'Darling, have you got _your_ school things ready?'

'Yes, Mother,' he said through mouthfuls of buttered toast.

'Oh good,' she replied fondly. 'Now, I've brought Leonardo downstairs, he'll be on the drawing room table. Is there anything else you need?'

'No, Mother,' Regulus answered, rolling his eyes, but only when his mother had turned away so that she could not see him.

Sirius finished his breakfast and left the table, eager to get away from his mother and brother. 'Where's Father?' he asked curiously.

Mrs. Black looked up at him. 'Your father is at the Ministry,' she replied unwillingly, as though he did not have a right to ask this question. 'He has very important work to do – he told me to wish you a good term and _not _to get in any sort of trouble.' She raised her eyebrows.

'Oh,' nodded Sirius, backing away under his mother's look. 'Well, I'll just go...' he exited the kitchen and ran up the stairs as quickly as he could, slamming his bedroom door behind him. His father had not been present on the last day of the holidays since he was eleven and first boarded the Hogwarts Express. He was always at the Ministry, busy with 'important work', as his mother liked to call it, and he spoke of this to no-one. Orion prided himself on his position as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. He was very rarely around but took the same approach as his mother: always favoured his little Slytherin son, always giving Sirius disapproving looks as though he had failed him. In response, Sirius always asked why Orion bothered with a job at the Ministry of Magic when the family were apparently steeped in gold anyway, and he might as well just strut around the house bragging of his pureblood ancestry and self-importance like the rest of them did.

Sirius picked up a jacket from his bedroom floor and stuffed it into his trunk which was lying on top of his chest of drawers. In truth, he still had to pack quite a few things before he was ready to leave for school. He tossed _A History of Magic _and a book that James had lent him, _Beating the Bludgers - A Study of Defensive Strategies in Quidditch_, into his trunk. Then he picked up his beloved, worn, red-and-gold striped Gryffindor scarf. Countless times had Regulus tried to bewitch it and turn the colours to green and silver just to annoy him, but Sirius had kept the scarf hidden in the drawer of his bedside table. He put it into the trunk, packed a few more items of clothing and then snapped it shut.

'Sirius! The car is here. I don't have time to be waiting, come on now, we've got half an hour to get to King's Cross.' His mother sounded rather irksome.

Sirius took one last look around his bedroom, and then heaved his trunk off his drawers and dragged it to his bedroom door. Closing it shut behind him, he went down the narrow wooden stairs with difficulty owing to his trunk, and met his mother, who was wearing a grey travelling coat, and his brother, who was grinning and holding a birdcage which contained his great eagle owl, Leonardo. Leonardo stared around at Sirius with his large yellow eyes and hooted, clicking his beak.

'You'd better get that thing away from me on the train,' Sirius warned him, who had always expressed a great dislike for the bird.

'I wouldn't sit with you and all your Gryffindor friends, anyway,' Regulus said snootily. 'I'll be with Edgar Bullstrode – _he's _got a salamander and he's going to feed it Drooble's and see what happens - '

'Yes, Regulus, come on now, get your trunk,' said Mrs. Black fussily, while Sirius snorted. 'The driver won't like to be kept waiting.'

Walberga opened the heavy wooden door to reveal a smart and shiny black car parked outside. She led the way while Sirius trailed behind and Regulus came last with his birdcage and trunk. The driver got out to help put the luggage in the back of the car. He was a smartly dressed wizard and he looked old but pompous, with a ruffled silver moustache and drooping eyelids.

The ride to King's Cross was a smooth one, with luxurious seating in the back that had been magically modified so that it could seat six. Leonardo got his own seat and he constantly ruffled his wings and hooted loudly. Sirius got so angry with him that he almost jinxed him into silence, but knew that his mother would not approve of performing magic on her beloved Regulus's pet owl.

They got out once they had reached the station and unloaded their luggage. Mrs. Black told the driver to wait, and walked with them to Platform 9 and ¾.

'Now, I think I'll just leave you here,' she said primly, fastening her purse. 'I am sure you'll be alright. You know the way by now. You won't need any fussy goodbyes.' She checked her watch. 'Ten minutes. Goodbye then, Regulus.' She hugged him and turned to Sirius. 'Goodbye, Sirius.'

'Bye,' Sirius mumbled awkwardly as his mother pulled him into a short hug.

'_Don't_ get yourself in any sort of trouble again,' she said, sighing. 'If only...'

Sirius watched as she trailed off and looked at Regulus pointedly, who was poking Eeylops Owl Treats into Leonardo's cage. He knew what she was getting at. Regulus, who was perfect in his mother's eyes, never got in any sort of trouble at school.

'Bye, Mother,' Regulus waved rather carelessly and hurled with his trolley at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. He melted beyond it as though it were not there.

Sirius gave his mother an awkward sort of look, who half-smiled as stiffly as the hug she had just given him. Then she turned her back and walked away.

Sirius vented his anger by running as fast as he could at the barrier, oblivious to any watching Muggles, and he did not care, he was going back to school and he was going to see his friends and to a place where no one was disappointed in him. He ran through the brick wall and then a second later he was on the platform with the scarlet, steaming Hogwarts Express waiting before him. People were helping their children board the train or else waving goodbye or greeting their friends after a summer apart. Sirius spotted Regulus climbing aboard with his friend Edgar Bulstrode, a podgy fourth-year Slytherin with piggy eyes and who spoke in grunt.

'Sirius! Alright, Sirius!'

James spun around to see an ever-grinning James approaching him, his glasses askew, his untidy hair ruffled. He embraced Sirius, clapping him on the back.

'Alright, James! How've you been? Good summer?'

'Great, thanks!' he replied. 'Here – look – Mum and Dad - '

Mr and Mrs Potter were standing beside James, smiling down on the son they so adored.

'Sirius, good to see you again!' cried Mr Potter, shaking Sirius's hand. Mrs Potter gave Sirius a kind, motherly look.

'Hello, Sirius, have you had a good summer?' she asked.

'Yeah, it's been okay, thanks,' Sirius shrugged. 'Just the usual. I heard you went to Italy?' he added with a wink at James.

'Yes, it was lovely,' she said, smiling. 'Didn't _you _go anywhere on holiday?' she said concernedly.

'Oh – no, my parents...we don't really go on holidays.'

'Nearly time, we'd best get on board!' cried James, who evidently was not listening and was looking up at the giant clock instead. 'Well, see you, Mum, bye Dad - '

His mother and father hugged him, and then Sirius (although Mr Potter shook Sirius's hand again), and they boarded the train and found an empty compartment. James and Sirius loaded their trunks onto the luggage rack and then flopped down in their seats. Mr and Mrs Potter waved frantically as the whistle sounded and the train began to gather speed. James and Sirius waved back, laughing, until the train had rounded the corner.

'Moony should be here soon,' James said casually. 'And Wormy. They said they'd try and find our compartment once they'd gotten on board.'

The train meandered through grand old buildings, cathedrals, and office blocks, making its way north through London. It was little over fifteen minutes when the other half of their familiar group of friends finally joined them.

'Alright, Remus!' said James happily. 'Where've you been, eh?'

'Been looking for you for ages!' answered Remus Lupin, looking rather dishevelled. He was young-looking, but tall, with a mop of light brown hair and he was always very humble and his modesty could not be any more different from James's overconfidence. James and Sirius often liked to joke that a book was Remus's best friend.

Peter Pettigrew bobbed along behind, looking delighted to be with his three best friends again. He was short and plump with a pointed noise, pale eyes and blotchy skin. 'Hello!' he said, exasperated, and flopped down on the seat next to Sirius.

'So, what did you do in the holidays?' asked James, once everyone had settled down. He was looking at Remus; however, before he could say anything, Peter spoke up.

'Oh, it was wonderful!' he said happily. 'I visited my grandmother, I went to Wales - '

'Yeah, I wasn't asking _you_, Pete,' interjected James, clearly annoyed.

The compartment filled with laughter; Peter, however, put his head down, looking forlorn.

'Nah, I'm just messing with you, Peter. What did you get up to, Remus?'

'Oh, nothing much,' replied Remus, who had already started to take a book out from his rucksack. 'I just played Quidditch with my cousin, mostly - '

'Ah, Remus, that reminds me, my dad got me a Cleansweep Five!' interrupted James eagerly.

'Oh, _wow_!' gasped Peter enviously.

'Really?' asked Remus incredulously.

'Yeah,' James said, enjoying the attention. 'Yeah, it's in my trunk, I'll show you when we get to school – it's amazing, I mean, you wouldn't believe – you can all have a go, it's brand new, Dad got it me for my exams...bit surprised, really, but there you go...'

'You'll just _flatten _Slytherin on a Cleansweep Five!' cried Peter, almost exploding with enthusiasm. 'I mean, you're an amazing Seeker as it is, of course, no competition, but - '

'Yeah, all right, Peter, don't be a suck-up, will you?' asked Sirius wearily, while the others laughed.

'No, seriously, though, I reckon I've – _we've – _got a good chance of winning the House Cup this year,' said James when the laughter had died down. 'I don't know anyone else who'll have a Cleansweep Five...mind you, George Summers might have, you know, from Hufflepuff...he's rolling in Galleons.'

'Really?' asked Sirius, surprised; George was Captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team and a year above them; he had always got on with them and didn't seem snooty in the slightest.

'Oh, yeah,' James nodded, 'his father's the Assistant Deputy for the Minister for Magic. He told me last year after a match. He doesn't like to tell people, you know, but we get on and he accepted his disappointment fairly well considering I smashed him in the match I'm on about - '

'Why won't he tell people?' asked Remus curiously.

'You know,' shrugged James, 'doesn't want the attention. He won't really have friends then, will he, if people know he's got money...he wouldn't really know if they liked him, or because they were just with him for the Galleons. I see his point, I mean; I wouldn't want attention either...'

Sirius sniggered. James was the most attention-seeking person he had ever met in all his life. He told him this on a daily basis but, due to the fact that their friendship was so strong, James just laughed it off. At least he knew it, and didn't pretend to be something he wasn't.

'So how's little Regulus?' James asked Sirius, winking. 'Not giving you too much trouble, I hope?'

'Ha, ha,' replied Sirius sarcastically. 'That bloody bird of his, I don't know why my mother let him have it – he's a menace, he keeps telling Kreacher to beat me up.'

They all chortled; even Sirius, for the idea of his little brother getting the wrinkly old family house-elf to beat him with a rolling pin seemed so ludicrous that he had to laugh.

'Anyway, what about _you_?' Sirius retorted. 'Seen anything of _Lily_ over the summer, have you? Asked her to stay over at yours?'

He had hit James's only weak spot; he went red while Remus, Peter and Sirius laughed.

'Come off it,' he mumbled, pushing Sirius hard on the shoulder. 'You _know _- '

'Nah, mate, I'm only messing,' Sirius replied. Sirius was the only person whom James had told properly about Lily Evans; the others knew he had an unyeilding soft spot for her, because his eyes suddenly became dreamy and glassy whenever she passed, and he blushed whenever he said her name. But James would only entrust his feelings for her to Sirius, and only Sirius; they were best friends, after all. Sirius knew that James had liked Lily – well, _adored _was a more appropriate term- for a long while, five years in fact, ever since he encountered her in his first year on the Hogwarts Express; liked her long shiny red hair and her deep green eyes – 'but if you tell _anyone_,' he had said fiercely as they sat in the Gryffindor common room one night in their second year, 'I won't be happy. I'll...I'll jinx you into a jelly, I swear I will.'

Remus suddenly jumped up, stowing his things away.

'Mate?' asked James curiously. 'Where're you going?'

'I've forgotten, I've got to do a patrol of the corridors...I'll see you in a bit.' He smiled, patted his Prefect badge fondly, and made for the compartment door. He came back minutes later, however, slightly breathless, and explained that the corridors were pretty quiet and the Head Boy had let him take a break for a while. The four of them then lapsed back into their usual catch-up conversation, punctuated with laughter and much teasing about whether Lily was around anywhere (James became extremely uncomfortable at this and hastily changed the subject). They continued like this, discussing Quidditch strategies and wondering whether Sirius should indeed try out for Gryffindor Beater like James had suggested, for another hour or so until the witch with the lunch trolley arrived. James bought them all hot cheese and onion pasties and Sirius bought several bottles of ice-cold pumpkin juice and a cream-filled chocolate bun for himself. Peter simply gorged on Chocolate Frogs.

'Aren't you getting anything, Remus?' asked James as he unscrewed a bottle of pumpkin juice. 'Cauldron Cake? A liquorice wand? Hippogriff truffle?'

'No thanks,' Remus replied, though rather regretfully. 'Thanks for the pasty, though...'

A light rain had begun to fall as they progressed through the countryside. The sky had turned a moody blue and thick with cloud as the raindrops began to pitter-patter on the train window. Sirius was glad of the warmth inside the train and the gas lamps that were lit inside the compartment made the scene much more cheerful. Remus was immersed in his copy of _Transfiguration Today_; Peter was excitedly admiring his new Chocolate Frog cards and James was asleep with his glasses askew and his head propped against the compartment door. Sirius, at loss for something to do, had grown tired of simply staring out the window, and said to the others that he was going to walk around for a while.

James grunted, but did not awaken, as he slid open the compartment door and entered the corridor. It was empty so far, and rather draughty; the rain had increased into a downpour and was lashing against the opposite window. Sirius turned to his right into another carriage and found himself face to face with Lily Evans.

She was pretty, and smiling, her wavy red hair pushed out of her face with a headband. Her friend Mary Macdonald, who was standing behind her, giggled. Her smile faded as she looked at Sirius, however.

'Oh – hi, Sirius,' she said, as though she felt she had to make conversation.

'Hi, Evans,' Sirius replied back with a cheeky grin. He had not expected to run into her like that. Lily simply waited, so he said, 'Good summer?'

'Er...yes,' she replied, her eyes swivelling from side to side. 'Can I get past, please? You know...Prefect patrols...'

Of course she was a Prefect. Sirius glanced at her chest and saw the brightly polished badge winking back at him smugly.

'Oh – sorry Evans! Mustn't get in the way of your oh-so-vital duties.' He stepped to the side to let her pass. Mary gave him a funny look as she swept by him, and giggled once she was out of earshot. He heard her whisper something to Lily as they went into a compartment near the end of the carriage. Sirius turned back to face forwards and spotted the Slytherin prefect heading towards him, on a patrol of the corridor. Not keen to be cornered by him, Sirius quickly hurried back into his compartment.

'That was a short walk,' Remus noted, not looking up from his Transfiguration magazine.

'Yeah,' said Sirius, sitting back down, 'I saw the Prefect, from Slytherin...'

'Bet it was Crabbe, he's always patrolling,' said Peter. 'He's such a bully, he took my Every Flavour Beans once, I never forgave him for that.'

'I bet,' grinned Sirius. 'Hey, I saw Lily Evans too,' he added. Then he turned to look at James, who was still asleep, and raised his voice. 'Hear that, James? _Lily Evans_ is - '

'Wha - ? Lily Evans – where?' grunted James, suddenly wide awake, his mouth gaping open and his glasses so wonky that they almost fell off. He soon realised that they were playing some sort of trick on him, however, as they were all howling with laughter, and chucked an old copy of _The Daily Prophet _at Peter, who was giggling so much that he snorted.

'Shut up, that _wasn't _funny!' he said angrily, blushing.

It was a while before the train reached Hogsmeade Station, and though Sirius was glad to be on the train with his friends again, he couldn't help sighing gratefully when the train started to slow and the old brick building with the large clock came into view. He was starving hungry, a little bored and couldn't wait to be back at Hogwarts again. The rain had worsened as their journey continued north and now it was positively pouring.

'Wouldn't like to be a first-year, in this weather,' said Remus, as he pulled his cloak further around himself. They were all changed into their Hogwarts robes and together they stepped off the train and into the cold rainfall. 'They're all going to be soaked!'

The four of them hurried, as fast as the crowd would allow them, along the platform and outside the station. They trudged through the heavy rain and all clambered into a horseless carriage. Though it smelled of damp and old straw, they were grateful to be in the warm and shook the rain off their cloaks as the long procession of carriages started to rumble its way up to Hogwarts.


	3. Two: Charmed

_A/N: It's been a while since I updated! The main reason is because I went back to school this past week, and I haven't found the time to post a new chapter or write some more stuff for my other fics. But today I give you chapter 2 of my Sirius/Lily_ _fanfic, huzzah! Hope you enjoy this one, R&Rs would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!_

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><p><strong>Two<br>Charmed**

Sirius had to admit, though summer held the prospect of no work, no school and no studying, he was as glad to be back at Hogwarts as ever, even if it did mean more homework. The walls were brightly lit with flaming torches, the atmosphere was warm and merry despite the crashing rain outside and the ghosts greeted them with booming 'hello's as they passed. Remus, Peter, Sirius and James all took their seats at the Gryffindor table and awaited the food expectantly.

'I'm absolutely starving; I've been looking forward to this ever since we got into the carriages,' Sirius said to James, who laughed.

'Now, now,' the Gryffindor House ghost, Nearly Headless Nick, tutted. He was standing near them with half of his body submerged in the table, the empty golden goblets surrounding him. 'There's the Sorting ceremony we have to look forward to first.'

'Oh, of course, that sounds brilliant, I can't wait,' James muttered to Sirius under his breath, so that Nick couldn't hear. Sirius looked up at the staff table, to see Dumbledore conversing politely with Professor Kettleburn, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Sirius liked Dumbledore very much; though they rarely spoke (except for when he got into the more serious spots of trouble), Sirius thought he was a very good Headmaster.

At that moment the first-years arrived, absolutely sopping wet and shivering from their experience crossing the lake in the wet weather.

'They don't look happy, do they?' Remus said, half-amused.

'I don't care what they look like as long as they hurry up!' James moaned, frowning. 'My stomach's rumbling here.'

It was quite some time before the straggle of first-years managed to get Sorted, or it seemed that way to Sirius, probably because he too was starving hungry and couldn't wait for the feast to begin. Finally, when the last little first-year had taken his place at the Hufflepuff table, Dumbledore stood up and smiled at them all.

'Good evening,' he said loudly, to get their attention. 'I trust all of you had most enjoyable summers, and now we return for another year. However, I think that most of you are waiting in anticipation for the feast to begin, and I do not wish to stand in your way. So, everybody tuck in!'

James made a shout of triumph as the golden dishes around them filled suddenly with sumptuous food. 'Finally!' he cried, spearing a pork chop with his fork and spooning roast potatoes onto his plate with his other hand.

Peter greedily grabbed a couple of chicken drumsticks, his face alight with excitement. Sirius gratefully ladled steak-and-kidney pie onto his plate; the food that Kreacher cooked up never quite compared to the food at Hogwarts. This was probably because Kreacher was old and never really liked him anyway, Sirius thought, as he speared broccoli and then tried out a pork chop because it looked like James was really enjoying his.

Remus suddenly tapped Sirius on the shoulder. 'Look,' he muttered, pointing to James. James had his fork dangling four inches from his mouth. He was gazing over to his left with an utterly gormless expression on his face.

Sirius followed James's gaze and saw that he was staring at Lily Evans, who was toying with her Shepherd's pie rather unenthusiastically, some ten or fifteen places away. Her friend Mary Macdonald was attempting to engage in conversation but she simply shook her head and stared down at her plate sadly.

'What's up with her?' Remus asked quietly. Sirius shrugged, but couldn't help laughing at James's dreamlike state.

'I dunno but I think James'll catch a fly if he doesn't watch out,' Sirius sniggered, and at this James closed his mouth and looked around at them all.

'What?' he asked incredulously, as Remus and Sirius chortled.

'Oh, nothing,' Sirius said, waving his hand, 'just get back to your pork chop, Lover Boy.'

'Shut up, something's wrong with her!' James retorted furiously. 'D'you reckon I should go over there and - '

'No way, Prongs,' Remus said seriously.

'Yeah, she already hates you as it is, you don't want to go making things worse,' Sirius added, grinning, and James elbowed him and continued eating, apparently unable to think of anything else to say. It was true; though James harboured a secret adoration for Lily, she seemed to think he was a conceited, arrogant brat who did nothing but saught attention. They hardly spoke but Lily wasted no time in telling James exactly what she thought of him when they did. James was somehow convinced that one day she would fall in love with him; Sirius often thought that the reason why James gloried in attention so much was just because he wanted to impress her.

They finished their dinners and the leftovers on the golden plates melted, replaced by mountains of sumptuous puddings: black forest gateau, trifle, treacle tart and syrup sponge lined the four long wooden tables.

'Who d'you reckon will be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher?' James asked them, as he helped himself to treacle tart.

'Not sure,' replied Sirius as he scooped a giant slice of strawberry cheesecake onto his plate and drowned it in cream. He hadn't looked up at the staff table since before the beginning of the feast.

'It must be him!' said Remus suddenly, who was staring at the long line of teachers at the front of the Hall, his eyes focused. He was looking at a stout, cheerful, round-faced man at the end of the table who was chatting delightfully with the Potions professor. The little hair he did have was grey and flyaway; he was wearing bright blue robes lined with gold. He appeared to have a fondness for cherry bakewell tart, owing to the fact that he had piled his plate high with it and the other teachers were giving him disapproving looks.

'Blimey, he loves his cherry bakewell, doesn't he?' said James.

'Seems decent enough though,' said Sirius. He did indeed look quite pleasant; too cheerful, it seemed, to be a Defence Against the Dark Arts professor.

They continued eating until they all felt too stuffed to move. Dumbledore rose gracefully and though he hardly made any noise, the whole Hall fell silent.

'Good evening to all of you,' he smiled, his eyes twinkling. 'I hope you enjoyed the feast, and I expect you are all longing to go to bed, but I have a few notices to give all of you.'

Sirius groaned; they were the same every year and most of them involved knowing looks at him and his three friends. Don't go into the Forest, no magic outside of classes...to him, rules seemed to be of little importance, or, as James put it, 'rules are made to be broken.'

'The Forbidden Forest in the school grounds is, as the name suggests, forbidden to all pupils,' began Dumbledore, and once again his bright blue eyes flashed in the direction of the four of them. 'The caretaker Mr Filch also asks me to remind all of you that there is to be no magic used in the corridors outside of classrooms.

'Quidditch trials also start next week and I ask that you contact either Mr McLudus or your team Captain should you wish to try out for your House team.

'And now,' Dumbledore said sternly, fixing them all with his X-ray gaze, 'I would like to remind you all of the dangerous situation we are presently in, and while I encourage you to learn as much as you can and enjoy your lessons here, that does not mean you can turn a blind eye to safety. It is strictly forbidden to be outside of your common room after hours, and you should be well out of Hogsmeade before the reccomended time. We have put hard work into these security measures for your own safety - it would be most unwise to take them as a joke, or take them for granted.'

The room was so still that a slight shuffle or cough sounded like a cannon-blast. Sirius felt as though the words had removed the cheery blaze of the fire from the Great Hall, although the torches and candles were still crackling merrily in their brackets.

Dumbledore gave a small smile which highlighted the creases in his eyes and folds of skin on his face.

'Finally, on a happier note, I would like to introduce our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Souriant. He has very kindly come here at my request and will make an excellent contribution to this school. I trust you will all make him feel welcome.'

There was a loud and polite clapping, to which Souriant stood up, grinning broadly, waved the applause away fondly and sat back down.

'Now with your busy term ahead of you I suggest you all head off to bed. Goodnight, everybody!'

'Souriant, eh?' asked James, as everyone stood up with a great clattering and banging and began to make their way to their dormitories. 'Bit fancy...'

'I think he seems nice,' added Peter, as he and Remus joined them in the giant huddle for the doors.

Sirius suddenly noticed that James, who was standing right next to him, had stopped still. Since there were hundreds of people pushing behind him, he urged James to move. 'Come on, James, keep movi - '

James was staring past Sirius. He had come face-to-face with Lily Evans and was simply looking at her, his frozen face a mix between surprise and pity.

'What are you looking at, toerag?' she snapped. Her eyes were still red and her face was rather blotchy, from crying, Sirius suspected.

'Erm...are you oka – I mean...erm - ' James spluttered.

'What are you talking about?' she asked him in disgust, and without waiting for an answer she turned and joined the other students waiting to get out of the Hall. Mary, who was of course by her side as always, sniffed at him and turned her back on them in contempt.

'Well,' said Sirius lightly, 'that was pleasant.'

Remus laughed. James had snapped out of his motionless state but was still staring at Lily's back, looking heartbroken.

'Seriously, James!' Sirius cried, amused. 'Why do you spend half your time trying to talk to her if she hates you so much?'

'Yeah, and you're not going the right way about it, Prongs,' chipped in Remus unexpectedly. 'With the way you talk to her, I'm not surprised she thinks you're a toerag.'

'Which you are,' Sirus added playfully, giving him a nudge with his elbow.

'She's upset!' replied James, exasperated. 'I want to know if she's okay – I bet it's old Snivellus, what's he done now, going and upsetting her all the time...I'll have him, I swear.'

The other three shook their heads as they finally reached the Entrance Hall. Students were milling around chatting and branching out to their separate common rooms.

'Come on,' said Remus. 'Gryffindor Tower.'

They followed him and the other Gryffindors up the stairs and to Gryffindor Tower, home to their common room, and met the Fat Lady, a talking portrait of a large woman in a pink dress. Sirius sighed with relief at the thought of a warm comfy bed waiting for him, with the promise of no Regulus shooting him with ice cold water when he woke up.

'Password?' the Fat Lady asked grandly.

'_Leone aureo_!' shouted Remus, who was at the front of the crowd guiding the first-years, and she swung forward to let them all in.

Happily, Sirius breathed in the scent of warm wood smoke, as he climbed through the portrait hole and into the common room that followed. A large and elegantly decorated fireplace, which was crackling merrily, lit a high-ceilinged room filled with squashy red armchairs, desks and oak bookcases. Little first-years were gawping in amazement, while other students simply headed for the staircase or found a chair to relax in for a while before bed.

'Can't wait to get to bed, I'm tired out,' Peter yawned.

'Yeah, come on,' Sirius said, and led the four of them up the stairs. He noticed James cast one longing, hopeful look at the oblivious Lily as she went up to the girls' dormitories before he dawdled, last, up to his own dormitory.

It was a while until James finally started to speak to Sirius properly, before which the snores of Peter and deep breathing of Remus had filled the circular dormitory with its four-poster beds.

'So...what _do _you reckon is up with her, then?' came a would-be nonchalant voice from the bed next to Sirius, but he knew it had been on James's mind ever since he had seen her in the Hall.

'I dunno,' replied Sirius. 'Must be bad, though, if she's been crying since the feast.'

'Yeah,' agreed James. 'I bet it _is _Snivellus.'

'Bet it is. I haven't seen them together, actually, come to think of it, have you?'

'Nah, she's been with that Mary, hasn't she...'

They lapsed into silence for a while. Then James spoke up again.

'I'm going to find him tomorrow. Confront him.'

'Why?'

'Why d'you think?'

'You won't find out. He won't tell you.'

'Well then, I'll have to make him, won't I?' said James confidently.

Sirius laughed quietly at his certainty. 'He won't tell you, mate! If it's that bad, then it's not going to be something he'll just go around telling everyone. Trust me. You'll just make a fool of yourself.'

James appeared to be thinking about this. Then he said a little sheepishly, 'not if I find him and get him to tell me in secret, you know, just me and him.'

'Is this James Potter, seeking out old Snivellus Snape in _private _without the chance to publicly humiliate him?' sniggered Sirius in mock amazement. 'Well, I never. The lengths you'd go to for Lily Evans. You like her _too _much.'

'Shut up,' whispered James. 'I don't know about the Snivellus thing. I wouldn't want to get too close, breathe in his germs, you know? I'll sleep on it. Night.'

'Yeah, night, mate,' replied Sirius, and rolled over to finally fall asleep.

The September morning arrived as cold and crisp as the frosted leaves falling from the trees outside. Sirius awoke to find he and Peter were the only ones left in the dormitory, so he dressed and threw a pillow at Peter to awaken him. Then he headed down to the common room and out of the portrait hole, ignoring the suppressed snort from Mary Macdonald as he did so. He found Remus and James eating breakfast in the Great Hall.

'Morning, chaps,' Sirius greeted with a grin, and sat down next to James, helping himself to eggs and bacon.

Remus nodded at him, leafing through _the Daily Prophet _between mouthfuls of muesli, while James clapped him on the back, a piece of toast in his hand.

'Any news?' Sirius asked grimly.

'A few Muggle killings,' Remus replied gloomily, 'and an arrest on a man for using the Imperius curse on an old warlock...ugh, he made him torture his family, how horrible...'

All three grimaced. Sirius noticed Peter breathlessly waddling down the table to join them.

'McGonagall's given us timetables,' said James. 'Here, I saved you one.'

'Thanks,' said Sirius gratefully; he noticed that they had Charms first, with the Slytherins, and groaned.

'Oh God, a morning with smelly old Snivellus,' he murmured. 'Hey – James – you didn't decide to do that thing ...'

James shot a warning look at him as Peter plopped himself down next to Remus and filled his plate with half a dozen sausages and hot buttered toast. 'Morning,' he said almost incoherently, as his mouth was full, and then spraying bits of sausage everywhere, he continued, 'Oh, are they our new timetables, let's see - '

'I didn't get _you _one, Pete,' snorted James, to much laughter, while Peter stared helplessly.

'But – you – I - '

'Only joking, Pete, here,' said James, passing him a timetable and rolling his eyes. 'Honestly! You're so gullible, you'd believe anything, you would. Have you seen what we've got first?'

'Ugh, Slytherins,' said Peter in disgust. 'And Charms. I'm rubbish at Charms.'

'Nah, it's a doddle,' said James easily, shrugging. 'We've got Transfiguration next though, yes! I'll get us a good few House points on the first day back, boys.'

James prided himself on – well, just about everything, but the main thing he liked to brag about, besides his Quidditch skills, was his Transfiguration work. He was extremely proud of his exceptional skill in Transfiguration and the teacher, Professor McGonagall, was indeed strict but yet no-one could deny she favoured her star pupil, James Potter, when he flawlessly turned a beetle into a yo-yo or something of the sort. She was forever dishing out House points whenever he was in class.

They finished breakfast and headed up to their Charms classroom full of breakfast and fresh motivation for learning, determined not to let Slytherins distract them. When they were just outside the door, James pulled Sirius back into a corner.

'About the Snape thing – I'm not going to do it,' James said quietly, but hurriedly.

'Good choice,' whispered Sirius, relieved. He had suspected it would cause some sort of trouble. 'Why not?'

'I'm going to find out another way,' replied James determinedly. 'You were probably right anyway, I don't think he would have told me. I could have forced him to, of course, but it's not worth the effort.'

'Nah, you're right,' Sirius agreed. Then he saw the look on James's face, and an idea came into his head. 'Wait...James, you're not going to make _Lily _tell you, are you?'

'Well, yeah, of course I am,' he said, as though it were simple. 'Why wouldn't she? I'll turn on the charm, you know - '

'Mate,' said Sirius, who couldn't believe what his best friend had just said, 'I don't know if you've noticed, but – you and Lily, you're not exactly best buds. She doesn't like you. And that's putting it bluntly,' he added, sniggering.

'Come on, Sirius, she loves me!' James cried. 'How can she not – she just tries to hide it. Don't worry, _I _can see right through her. I bet she's just scared of what Snivellus would say. But you know. I'll figure her out.' And, straightening out his collar, he sidled past Sirius into the Charms classroom.

In disbelief, Sirius followed.

'Unbelievable...' he uttered, pushing open the heavy wooden door. He couldn't believe James was spending so much time and thought on trying to work out what one girl was upset over at the dinner table. It was probably something petty all girls cried over, like the death of a pet or their favourite dress robe outfitters shutting down. Then again, Sirius pondered, this wasn't just 'one girl'. This was Lily Evans, popular, pretty, Prefect, talented at just about everything and somebody that all boys in the year thought about going out with at least once, even if they were out of her league. In a way, he could understand James's obsession, but was completely perplexed about the amount of time he had tirelessly kept it up. Five years he had sighed over her, scribbled her name in hidden textbooks, hurled himself headfirst into the limelight in an attempt just to catch her eye. But she hadn't even given him a second look, and if she had, it was a look of distaste. Oblivious to his affection, while greasy-haired vindictive Snivellus 'Wannabe-Death-Eater' Snape sneered at him in spite. Sirius could never understand why Lily chose to spend time with _him _as opposed to James. Okay, he was attention-seeking and boisterous, but at least he wasn't into all the Dark magic stuff, and at least he actually washed his hair regularly. If I was a girl, thought Sirius, I'd take that any day.

'Mr. Black! Are you listening over there?'

Professor Brushforth, the strict and often rather insulting Charms teacher, was stood at the front of the classroom with an ever-present frown on his aquiline face. It appeared that Sirius's blank face had distracted him from teaching. James, who was sitting next to him, turned to look at him in puzzled amusement.

'Erm...yeah, Professor, sorry...'

'Well, it certainly didn't look like it! Straighten up and listen properly if you want to actually learn something. If not, prepare for a fail in your Charms O.W.L this year! I say, boy, the most important time in your education and you choose to spend it by staring into space...'

'No change there, then,' came a cruel sneer from the corner, and Sirius instantly whipped around to spot, as predicted, a sallow and greasy-haired Severus Snape, hunched alone at a desk with his lank hair falling around his face. Some other Slytherins laughed as if on cue, namely Snape's foul and grotesquely ugly Death Eater friends. Not that they were real friends; 'cronies' was a more appropriate term.

Sirius was just about to shoot back some witty retort, but before he could, a louder, fiercer voice spoke for him: a voice that he recognized, but was surprised to hear.

'Shut up, Sev,' Lily Evans spat from the desk behind them.

James instantly turned around in his seat as though he had been branded with a red hot poker. Sirius turned, too; Lily was looking defensive and her eyes were screwed up in anger, though they could not hide the red rims and tell-tale tear tracks that showed her inexplicable distress. However, it looked as though the inexplicable distress had indeed been explained: James now had his answer to what had been playing on his mind since the night before, and he hadn't even had to ask anyone about it.

There was a collective 'Oooooh!' from the class, and immediately everyone dissolved into whispers.

'Looks like Prongs' lover girl and Grease Boy have had a little fall-out,' hissed Sirius to Remus and Peter sat at the desk next to them. They both tittered in agreement – but James was looking at Sirius as though hit by a heavenly white light.

'D'you think?' he said hopefully.

Before Sirius could answer, Professor Brushforth shouted at the class to settle down and they resumed studying. Although Sirius now started paying attention and practising his Summoning Charm to a level of such perfection that made several quills come zooming towards him, he couldn't help noticing that James was suddenly a lot perkier, and kept sneaking a glance at both Lily and Snape, in turn (but, of course, never failing to keep up his cool-guy reputation, he pretended to be looking at the clock).

Sirius was relieved when the class was over and, giving a snarling Snape a wide berth, he and his three friends hurried upstairs for Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws. Sirius hoped the attention James got in Transfiguration would distract him from the recent Charms mishap. He didn't want to be badgered by questions he didn't know the answer to.


	4. Three: Candlelight

_A/N: Woah, it's been ages since I updated! Sorry. The main reason is just I've been at school most of the time and by the time I'm finished I can't be bothered to add a new chapter and check it thoroughly for spelling mistakes, grammar etc. But huge, huge thanks to people who have reviewed not just this story but the others too, and an extra special thanks to_ _IWLTxo for the review and constructive criticism. Hope you all find this chapter cool and I'll see you next time, folks._

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><p><strong>Three<br>Candlelight**

The rest of the day passed quietly with little drama. Sirius was glad to swat his bag on the floor beside his bed and shrug his robes off. Several times he and his three friends spotted Lily sat in the corner of the Gryffindor common room with her head in her hands and a wary-looking Mary awkwardly patting her on the shoulder. James had casually suggested they all go over and try to talk to her, but Remus advised him not to; he said she would be too upset to talk to any one of them at the moment, and since she never really talked to them anyway, there would be nothing much to say. James had failed to hide his crestfallen face but nodded and instead they spent a cool summer evening sat by the lake, unnoticed by the gamekeeper and swigging bottles of honey mead swiped from the kitchens.

Sirius joined James, Peter and Remus at the Gryffindor table next morning, Remus clouded by his usual paper and Peter clouded by his usual glut of food.

'She's not here,' James muttered as Sirius sat down, and he did not have to ask who he was talking about, nor look to see if Lily was sat eating breakfast in misery.

'Potions today!' Sirius exclaimed sarcastically. 'Then History of Magic...oh, and with the Slytherins! Aah, what a lovely day it's going to be.' His enthusiasm deflated at the morning lessons ahead; Potions was complex and hard work, and History of Magic was easily the most boring subject in the wizarding world.

'Why are you so bothered about _lessons_?' James asked as though lessons were far beyond him. 'I'm not bothered about what we have – I've been thinking about some new pranks we could pull, eh? The sooner we get started, the better. It wouldn't be the same without some old Marauder mishap.'

Sirius's good mood returned at the thought of this; pranking was, of course, his favourite way to spend his time and he and James found that making other people look stupid was the best source of entertainment. Peter, of course, found it all too hilarious though he was rarely the mastermind behind any Marauder joke owing to the fact that he had little brains. Remus did seem to enjoy it but was always the one making them feel guilty afterwards. Sometimes Sirius wished he would lighten up – he understood that every month Remus had to go through some pretty horrible stuff but, as he always said, playing practical jokes on people was the best way to take his mind off it.

Remus proved his cautious sensibility there and then. 'But...I don't know...this is O.W.L year, we'd better start knuckling down, don't you think? We're going to get loads of homework, you know, we won't have time for jokes...'

'Oh, forget about all that, Moony,' laughed James easily with a wave of his hand. 'All the more reason to do it, actually!'

'Yeah, people need a laugh right about now,' put in Sirius who was on the same wavelength.

'And who better to supply it to them than the Marauders?' grinned James. 'We'll meet behind that tapestry of Helge the Handsome tonight, think up some good ones. I've got loads of money saved up and there's a Hogsmeade visit soon so we can buy some stuff from Zonko's.'

Sirius agreed enthusiastically. Remus shrugged, giving up on his protests, and smiled gingerly. Peter just snorted with laughter.

'Oh, by the way, Padfoot, I've had a chat with old Abbott,' said James, ducking closer to Sirius so as not to be heard. 'Trials are on Saturday and he says there's a spot free for a new Beater. Their old one was a bit cocky. I reckon you're in with a good chance, mate.' He winked and raised his eyebrows.

'Thanks, Prongs,' said Sirius, clapping his best friend on the back.

'Are you still going to be Seeker?' interjected Peter hopefully.

'Yeah, of course!' laughed James. 'Ernie wouldn't give _me _up for a sack of Galleons, I'm the reason we keep winning matches.' He looked at them all with another boisterious wink. 'I don't know, sometimes I just think I'm too talented for my own good.' He sighed sorrowfully.

'Well, Potter, maybe you are,' came a light, sarcastic voice from behind them. Sirius turned to see a falsely smiling Lily striding past, her long red hair streaming out behind her like a banner. She was carrying a book in one hand. 'And just maybe, if we're lucky, your talent will develop a mind of its own and kick you up the backside – if the rest of us don't get there first, that is...'

James turned back to the table as quickly as he had spun around to see who the voice had belonged to. He laughed, bewildered, and tried to redeem himself, but for the rest of the morning he didn't brag once.

**OoO**

'James, mate, you've got to stop acting like this...'

'Acting like what? I'm not acting like anything.'

It was late at night, and Sirius and James were sat behind the tapestry James had mentioned earlier. Remus wasn't there yet; he was finishing his Prefect patrols, and they assumed Peter was either in bed or smuggling some sort of midnight snack before meeting them.

'You, and Evans...well, whenever you talk to her...that's the thing. You _don't _talk to her.' Sirius was trying to be gentle, for he knew it was a touchy subject, but he had decided after two days that he needed to confront James about his strange behaviour. It was for his own good.

'Come off it, she's just a bit weird with me, that's all. She's probably trying to hide her feelings,' James added with a wink.

'She's been weird with you for five years,' Sirius said quietly. He knew James was trying to avoid talking about what he really felt, trying to hide behind his cocky attitude and charm, but they were best friends, and Sirius knew it had to be said. 'But that's not the point. While she's been upset, and crying and stuff, you just stand there and stutter. What's up? You're usually...well...'

'I know,' agreed James, sighing. Because he didn't know any other way to act, he talked to Lily the way he talked to just about anybody – boasting, drawling, occasional insults and witty jokes – they were all thrown in. Both James and Sirius were like this. It was just part of their easy-going, cheeky, Marauder nature. And Lily didn't like one bit of it.

'Well – don't you think you should start - '

'I'm not being _nice _to her!' said James defensively. 'That's not – I can't. When she talks to me like that, and now I have to _put up with it_ – '

'I never said that!' Sirius interrupted, his temper rising. 'Mate, just be normal, yeah? You being all stammery and...it's just weird.'

'But she's crying and miserable all the time!' replied James, at loss for words. 'What else am I supposed to do – I can't be like I usually am with her when she's so moody, can I? She'd either get even more upset or hex me to death.'

'She seemed alright today,' said Sirius coolly. 'Back to normal, in fact.'

Indeed, Lily no longer appeared sullen and miserable, and she no longer had tear tracks or glassy red eyes – on the contrary, she looked content and bright again, and was attentive in class as she usually had been for the past five years. And, judging by the haughty yet slightly playful dig she had taken at James today, everything seemed, like Sirius said, back to normal again.

'Yeah,' agreed James thoughtfully. 'You're right, mate. I bet I looked pretty pathetic, didn't I? Just standing there gawping at her...'

'Yeah, you did, mate,' grinned Sirius, and soon they had collapsed into laughter. That was the best thing about James: once you got the serious stuff out of the way, you always had a laugh about it afterwards.

**OoO**

Sirius could not hide his swelling relief when he and James entered the Great Hall for breakfast the next morning, and James immediately strutted over when he spotted Lily.

She was sat some distance away from the other Gryffindors, eating alone though the toast she had buttered for herself was now cold and untouched. She saw the two of them coming towards her looking overly happy, and prepared for the worst.

'Morning, Evans! Where's that MacDonald girl that's usually latched onto you?' James greeted cheerfully, sitting down opposite her and reaching for an apple.

'Why do you care?' she answered flatly. 'And how come you've finally started formulating proper sentences now? I thought you'd ran out of words...I mean you _do _have a poor vocabulary considering how over large your head is.'

James was quick to retort. 'Well, after a whole summer apart, I'd forgotten how ugly your face is, you see...I've come to the conclusion that there are just no words for it.' He gave her a grin a mile wide, which she did not return.

'Just leave me alone,' she warned, as though tired of repeating it. Her wide green eyes left them and focused instead on a nearby _Daily Prophet._

'Come on, Evans, I'm messing,' James continued bravely. 'You look mighty fine today. Especially now you've stopped being so miserable. It just didn't suit you.'

Lily looked up sharply, frowning. 'You're such an insensitive pig,' she said disgustedly. 'You don't care about anyone, or anything, but yourself!'

She stood up suddenly and swept past them. 'Here I was, thinking I could be left alone without two annoying pompous arseholes bothering me...well pigs might fly...'

James stared at Sirius in amazement. 'Give a girl a complement, and you get called insensitive!' he said in outrage.

'She said _I _was an annoying pompous arsehole too!' exclaimed Sirius, jabbing a thumb in his chest in indignation. 'I didn't even _say _anything...'

At that moment, Remus joined them, but he did not sit down. 'Erm...I've just walked past Lily, she told me to tell you that she hopes you get hit on the head by a Bludger at Qudditch trials.' He looked from one to the other, both confused and slightly anxious.

'What? Me?' spluttered Sirius, as he nearly spat out his pumpkin juice. 'I wasn't the one who insulted her!'

'No, actually, it was just meant for James,' Remus admitted.

The response to that statement differed between the two; Sirius howled with laughter and James simply sat looking gobsmacked. Sirius explained to Remus the recent encounter with Lily, and, to their surprise, he looked concerned.

'I don't blame her...' he began gingerly, chancing a look at James. '...I mean...I talk to her on patrols and stuff...she's nice, but she's been really down at the moment.'

'Yeah, and it's that greasy little git Snivellus who's caused it! I told her, remember, I said he was trouble, but she didn't listen and now they've had a little tiff and he's running off getting himself into the Dark Arts. Idiot.'

'I say we Jelly-Legs Jinx him until he can't stand,' said Sirius firmly, and smiling at the mental image of a helpless Snape wobbling around on the floor, to their classmates' amusement.

'Good one, Padfoot,' agreed James. 'Let's do it now – '

'Forget about that,' said Remus hurriedly. 'Have you got the stuff for tonight?'

The Marauders were planning their traditional back-to-school practical joke, and there was only one rule for this: it had to be big, _very _big, on a scale which involved the entire school taking notice. It was usually impressive and filled with loud bangs and sparks to set the whole thing off. This year they had decided on a chaotic extravaganza of fireworks, Stink Bombs, and screaming students running around everywhere, and as their skills and techniques had improved over time, this one was the best they had ever thought of. The cherry on top of the cake was going to be the cranky caretaker Filch hobbling about the Entrance Hall in the midst of all the anarchy, attempting to restore order, to no avail. Tonight, however, was the trial run (something the Marauders always did before a serious prank), which meant they were simply checking positions and arranging the various elements of their prank in the right places.

'I've got the supplies, don't worry,' James assured them. 'Now...let's go over the plan. Peter will take that secret passageway near the library that ends up on the second floor, and wait for Remus to get there...wait, where is Peter, anyway?'

'He skipped breakfast,' Sirius said idly. 'I know, I was shocked too. Apparently he's got to finish that Herbology essay – we've got it first this morning.'

'Right,' James said, though he didn't seem interested. 'Okay, so Remus gets there, if Peter hasn't stopped him of course – which could happen; Mrs Norris is everywhere, Moony, so just bear that in mind – and then Peter continues to patrol the second floor while Remus goes down and waits for us in the Entrance Hall, watching out for any unwelcome visitors, of course.'

'Meanwhile, Prongs fetches the supplies from his dormitory and brings them down to the sixth floor,' Sirius continued, in a whisper now because the Hall was starting to fill with more and more students, 'where I'll be waiting. We both put on the Invisibility Cloak and take the secret passageway that goes from the sixth floor to the first, signal to Peter to come down and then all three of us, in the Cloak, meet Remus in the Entrance Hall.'

'So we do a run-through,' Remus finished, 'though not actually setting everything off, of course...and then all four of us back up to Gryffindor Tower.'

'Should be just before 1 o'clock,' James told them. 'If my timing's right – and it always is.' He winked knowingly and then started buttering toast with a satisfied expression.

'Remember, any sign of Filch, Mrs. Norris, or any teachers, retreat immediately,' Sirius reminded them both. 'And if the worst comes to the worst, Bat Bogey Hexes without hesitation.'

Sirius started eating breakfast feeling much happier despite Herbology first that morning with Professor Cumberbatch, who was bound to set them a fresh set of homework despite how much he had already. He couldn't deny the anticipation bubbling up in his stomach that always preceded an after-hours bout of rulebreaking.

**OoO**

Wiping the slight sheen of sweat on his brow, Sirius searched with worried eyes for a sign of the bespectacled and grinning James walking towards him.

'Come on, where _is _he...'

He checked his watch. It was quarter to midnight. James was supposed to be bringing the supplies at half past eleven, and there was still no sign of him. His hands, one holding his lit wand, began to tremble slightly, and his heart was thudding ever faster, but he enjoyed the rush of fear that washed over him. Even with the possibility that part of their run-through had failed and teachers were patrolling the corridors looking for him, that risk always seemed to be better than what they were supposed to be doing in the first place.

At ten to midnight, possibilities started to rush through Sirius's mind. James was either being held up in some way on his journey to meet him, or had not left the common room yet. Perhaps there were still people in there, and he couldn't chance sneaking past them? He would still have to say the password, and a puzzled Fat Lady swinging open for an invisible man would no doubt attract some attention.

Sirius froze to the spot as dread washed over him. The distinctly heard sound he had not failed to comprehend, due to the fact that all the nerves in his brain were on red-alert, was now growing ever closer. It was a horrible scrawny meowing, and Sirius knew instantly it belonged to Filch's dearly loved cat Mrs. Norris.

He had to get out of there, and fast. He unfroze from his dog-like position and turned, heading for the tight spiral staircase that he knew would take him to the seventh floor corridor, not far away from the Fat Lady. Hopefully, it would be deserted and he would be able to return to his common room and interrogate James to find out why he was so late.

Blood still pumping fiercely in his head, Sirius reached the top of the staircase to find himself in a narrow passageway scattered with old crates and cracked, discarded bottles of Butterbeer. He headed for the large square gap in the stone wall, covered by a stretch of canvas on the other side, and pushed the canvas slightly to peep through.

It was mercifully empty as far as Sirius could tell, and, realising how worn out he was, he scrambled out of the hole and replaced the painting that covered it. He then tore down the corridor, hoping against hope he wouldn't run into anyone unpleasant, and stopped at the Fat Lady, clutching a stitch in his side.

'_Leo – leone aureo_,' he gasped, and with a disapproving, 'Tut, tut, Black, what would the family say,' he stepped into a dark common room.

The first thing he did was trip over something smooth and very solid. He stumbled and caught himself by gripping a nearby table.

'Aaah – what the – _bugger_ – '

He turned and peered around on the floor for the source of the throbbing pain that had now erupted in his big toe. He spotted an unopened ink pot lying close by, and decided that must have been it. Stupid first-years scattering things around.

Then someone called out his name in the darkness.

The annoyance he felt melted, to be replaced by shocked surprise. For one wild moment he thought it was James, but he knew it wasn't.

He knew that voice.

The common room was dimly lit by one candle. Sirius could make out a figure sitting on a squashy red sofa, alone and looking right back at him, mirroring his exact expression.

'What are _you _doing here, Evans?'


	5. Four: Slytherins & Shenanigans

_A/N: Guten Tag, I'm posting two chapters today because I had a mix-up in my chapters and publishing and...ugh. It was confusing. So here's Chapter 4. Hope you like. :)_

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><p><strong>Four<strong>  
><strong>Slytherins &amp; Shenanigans<strong>

Sirius could hardly believe it. Little Miss Perfect out of bed after hours, sitting in a dark and lonely common room. He could hardly make sense of it. Then he started panicking. What if Lily had found out about their midnight plans and decided to wait for them and confront them? She was a Prefect, after all – she'd probably never miss out on the chance to get them in trouble. Or was there something more sinister behind it? Were there teachers hiding in the darkness, unseen and ready to jump out and catch him in the act? Bizarrely, Sirius fought back an urge to laugh – the mental image was hilarious.

'What are you doing? Wallowing in your own misery?' asked Sirius incredulously, yet he couldn't keep the scoffing, sarcastic tone at bay.

'It's nothing to do with you, Sirius,' snapped Lily thickly. 'Just get back to bed.'

'Oho! Since when did you think you could tell _me _what to do, eh, Evans?' said Sirius, and though she couldn't see it, he raised his eyebrows and stuck his hands in his pockets. 'Oh – wait, I forgot, sorry, you're a Prefect.' Then another thought struck him and he couldn't help voicing it. 'Wait...oh, this is rich! _You're _telling me to get to bed when you've been sat here Merlin knows how long and I expected you of all people to abide by the rules! Oh, talk about setting a good example – '

'Sirius!' Lily suddenly burst out. '_Please_.' And she put her head in her hands, sighing to herself as though she was trying not to cry.

Suddenly feeling worried that it had been he who had upset her, he rushed over and sat by her, not really knowing what to do. Given that he and Lily had never talked one-on-one before, and _definitely _not when she seemed to be at some sort of breaking point like this, the situation was undeniably an awkward one.

'Come on, Evans, don't cry on me,' laughed Sirius, trying to shrug off the uncomfortable atmosphere clouding them like darkness.

'I don't...go away!' she gasped, evidently embarrassed that he was seeing her so vulnerable. Well, he could hardly blame her. This was her biggest tormentor's best friend, and occasionally his fellow tormentor too. They weren't exactly on good terms.

'Well, if you really want me to, I will, but forgive me for actually trying to _help_ you.' Sirius shook his head, deciding it was hopeless, and stood up.

'How are you trying to help me?' Lily demanded sarcastically, lifting her hands away, and through the candlelight Sirius caught the sparkle of tears on her freckled face. She looked much younger in the soft light, and he was strangely reminded of when he first saw her on the first day at Hogwarts five years ago.

'I – I came over to see what was up with you,' Sirius explained. 'But no, you wouldn't even let me do that. Honestly!'

'Well can you blame me?' Lily said quietly. 'After five years of assisting James in whatever stupid schemes you plan, and annoying the hell out of me all the time because I was friends with Sev, I can only assume you're here to make fun of me.' She dropped her gaze and stared down at the floor.

Sirius disregarded everything she had just said except for one part that caught his attention. 'Wait..._was_ friends?'

It was dark, but Sirius could have sworn she rolled her eyes. 'Catch on, will you, Black?' she said flatly.

'Hey, hey, Evans, I just thought you'd had a little disagreement,' said Sirius defensively. 'Didn't realise you'd actually stopped being friends...touchy. Still.' He held out a hand for her to shake. 'Good for you, Evans! Glad you finally saw sense.'

Lily stared at his hand with a deadpan expression. Sirius let it drop lamely.

'You don't even understand,' she said miserably.

'So go on then, Evans. Delight me.'

She snorted. 'Give me a reason why I should.'

Sirius blinked. He hadn't been expecting that. In the end, he said, 'because Snivellus Snape is quite frankly an arse and I want to know how you managed to get rid of him.' This was true, at least.

Lily did something else he wasn't expecting; she laughed. 'Probably the only thing we can agree on,' she smiled.

Sirius sat back down, yawning. 'Well? I'm waiting for your thrilling tale, and bearing in mind it's the early hours of the morning so I'm not in the best mood.'

'Go then, nobody said you had to stay here,' Lily snapped. 'I expect _Potter's_ waiting for you, anyway.'

Sirius suddenly felt a tide of guilt overcome him. It was the first time he'd thought of James since seeing Lily Evans sat by herself in the common room, and imagined the look on his face if he knew his best friend was up at gone midnight with the girl he'd fawned over for five years. Even though it was a job just to make polite conversation, let alone have a heart-to-heart with Lily, it was hard to beat back the betrayal that suddenly overcame him. Then he remembered that James had never even arrived with supplies for the plan, which caused Sirius to retreat back to the common room and find Lily there, so therefore this was all James' fault.

'I doubt it,' Sirius said darkly, his anger suddenly rising. 'He's probably roaming the castle somewhere...his loss.'

'What are you talking about?'

Sirius hadn't realized he was speaking out loud. 'Oh – nothing – '

'He's wandering about the castle? In the name of Merlin's – how stupid could you get? He's such an idiot, he thinks he could get away with murder, honestly...swaggering around, _so _beneath everyone, can't resist showing off, I honestly can't understand why everyone swoons over him – '

'_Swoons_?' Sirius repeated.

Lily seemed a little embarrassed, and was finding it difficult to explain herself. 'Yes – well, most girls are after him, and...' She put emphasis on the 'most' to indicate that as big a Quidditch hero and as infuriatingly good-looking as James was, a few seemed to be unfazed, and she was definitely one of them. Perhaps the only one.

'Yeah, well...let's just say he doesn't take too much interest in them,' Sirius told her, shaking his head. 'He's got his sights on – er – other stuff.' Somehow, he felt he was doing a very bad job of explaining that no other girl really did compare for James and therefore, despite the floods of attention he got from girls in just about any year, he never actually took them seriously as possible girlfriends. He did take to the attention extremely well, but everyone oblivious to James' love for Lily just thought that James considered all girls out of his league.

And Lily was one of them.

'Well, I didn't expect anything less. I bet he doesn't even give girls a second look, does he? He doesn't deserve the attention he gets. They're just wasting their time – of course _they_ couldn't measure up to date the perfect Quidditch hero James look-at-me Potter – '

'Seriously, Evans, don't you get it? Half the stupid bloody things he does are to impress you!' Sirius shouted, exasperated.

Lily was quite obviously taken aback.

'What?'

'Yes! What else makes you think he's bothered enough to keep insulting you?'

'But – that's not – it still doesn't change the fact that he's arrogant and conceited.' She folded her arms defensively.

'Whatever,' said Sirius, who was done trying to convince her. She wouldn't believe him, anyway. She would most likely think he was playing some sort of cruel joke on her. 'Are you going to tell me why you've fallen out with him or not?' Sirius questioned sulkily.

'Fine. I will.'

'Thank you!'

She flinched at the sarcasm but did not acknowledge it. 'Well, if you really want to know, and I can't think why you would, I've stopped being friends with Sev because he didn't stick up for me when his friends called me a Mudblood.'

Sirius stared at her, sure that for a moment he had mistaken the last word. He didn't say anything, but had the strangest urge to shout 'I told you so' at her. He shook away the thought immediately; Mudblood was a foul insult which, Sirius remembered with a shudder, was a word his mother liked to use on witches and wizards of Muggle birth. He despised the word, and couldn't help feeling rather sorry for her. After all, as annoyingly clever and so terribly rule-abiding Lily Evans may be, he wouldn't ever call her something like that.

'Er,' Sirius mumbled, at loss for something comforting to say. 'So, what happened?'

'It was at the end of last year,' Lily sniffed. 'He was with his friends – Mulciber and Anton, those really awful seventh-years. I tried to talk to him to tell him that I didn't think it was good, you know, getting into the Dark Arts, and I told him he'd really changed since he'd started being friends with them. I said I wouldn't see him over the summer if he was going to stay like that. And then Mulciber said – he said - '

'What did he say?' said Sirius, though he knew what the answer would be, and almost didn't want to hear it.

'He said, "I don't know why anyone would even care to be seen in the company of a filthy little Mudblood like that." And then do you know what Severus did? He just laughed. He stood there and laughed.' She grimaced at the memory.

'I can't believe – it's a horrible thing to say,' Sirius said shakily. 'Are you...you know, are you alright?'

'I'm fine,' Lily said stiffly. 'But anyway, he pestered me all summer, said he was _sorry_, said he would make it up to me. I wouldn't listen. Eventually he told me he would stop talking to all his Slytherin friends when we got back to school, and I was stupid enough to trust him.'

'He's an idiot,' Sirius stated grimly. 'Just a slimy, selfish git.'

'I know that now!' Lily said in a tone that implied he thought she was stupid. 'He ignored me completely the day we got back to school, and the day after that, and yesterday he found me and apologised, and said he'd been busy with homework and stuff – '

'Yeah, I bet,' muttered Sirius sceptically.

'– And tonight I found him with _them_, and they were doing stupid Dark stuff to one of Souriant's snakes, and we fought and I said he was an utter arse and I knew he was close to saying it, I knew he was. But I ran out and came back here.'

She looked at him, sadness flickering in her eyes. 'So, that's what I'm doing here.'

There was nothing except for the steady drip of wax on the candle holder.

'It's so stupid. I tried really hard to fit in, and he makes me feel like an outcast. Why does my birth even matter so much? Why are people so damn prejudiced?'

'You don't know prejudice until you've met my mother,' muttered Sirius, more to himself than Lily.

'What's that?'

'Nothing,' said Sirius quickly, while Lily's forehead frowned in suspicion. 'Look, it's only Snivellus, I wouldn't worry about losing him as a friend. You've got Mary, haven't you?'

'Yeah,' said Lily reasonably, though she seemed annoyed at Sirius's insensitivity. Then again, what did she expect? Sympathy from Sirius Black was like Dumbledore without eccentricity. 'I just...I feel really worthless.'

The statement sent memories flashing all around his mind. Gryffindor banners permanently hung above his four-poster bed in Grimmauld Place. His mother, sneering at him in disgust, so obvious though she never said a word about it. Never feeling like a real part of the family. Regulus jabbing him with never-ending spite and cruelty. Disappointment, shame, and distaste.

'You're not the only one,' sighed Sirius under his breath. 'Look, I'm really tired. Come on, Evans, let's call it a night.' He stood up, suddenly both extremely tired and annoyed that she had kept him up to this time.

'You haven't told me what _you_ were doing here,' Lily stated.

'True.'

'So aren't you going to tell me?' she questioned curiously.

'Ah, now that would be telling,' Sirius grinned, tapping his nose. 'I'll see you round, Evans.'

He made for the boy's dormitory with his hands still in his pockets. He thought he heard Lily mutter, '_Unbelievable_,' but then thought he had imagined it, because when he turned around the candle had been blown out and he could only assume she had gone up to bed.


	6. Five: Mixed Messages

_A/N: Hey guys! Thought I'd post this chapter early because I'll be in Berlin for most of next week. I'm really looking forward to it! Anyway, I hope you liked the previous chapter and I hope you R&R this one. Thanks!_

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><p><strong>F<strong>**ive  
>Mixed Messages<strong>

Sirius awoke hours later wondering to himself whether last night was real, or just a bizzare and confusing dream. Did he really have an honest conversation with Lily Evans? He nearly grimaced at the thought of it.

And what about James? Should he tell him about it, or not? Would he be annoyed, or really not bothered? Sirius felt a sudden bolt of anger shoot through him as he remembered James's failure to turn up the night before. When he had gone up to his dormitory (and wondered to himself whether the past half an hour had been some sort of practical joke), James's bed was empty. Now, he cast a look over at it and saw that it was still unoccupied. He really needed to find him, for the curiosity and annoyance was growing like some sort of stubborn pimple.

He thrust back the covers, dressed and went down to the common room. The sight of the stubby candle still sitting on the table next to the sofa brought back a torrent of memories from the conversation which occured not eight hours ago. It seemed so strange that they had sat together on that sofa, he had tripped on that inkpot still lying lost and forlorn on the floor by the portrait hole. In the dusky morning light, everything seemed different.

Sirius was still deciding what to do about telling James (or not, as the case may be) as he shuffled downstairs alone. Remus and Peter were both absent from their beds, too. It made him slightly uncomfortable to think that he had no idea where any of his friends were.

Thankfully, Remus and Peter were already at breakfast, although Sirius noted with more suspicion than usual that James wasn't there. Sirius also remembered that they, too, were alone in the castle last night and were probably annoyed with him for not meeting them as planned.

'Morning,' he said tentatively.

'Morning, Sirius,' said Remus absent-mindedly, his head hidden by his usual _Daily Prophet_.

'Any news?'

'Where were you last night?'

Sirius blinked, taken aback. It wasn't accusatory, but Remus just seemed genuinely concerned and curious.

'Well, I waited on the sixth floor, for fifteen minutes, and Prongs didn't bloody show up, did he?' Sirius sighed. 'So I heard Mrs. Norris, made a run for it and ended up in the common room.'

'And then?' Remus prompted.

'Did you just go up to bed?' Peter guessed.

'Did you find James?' Remus asked.

'No,' Sirius said, not entirely sure which question he was supposed to be answering. He didn't know when it was, exactly, but he had decided he wasn't going to tell anyone, not even the rest of the Marauders, about his encounter last night. Especially not James. He didn't want him to know, and get hurt...and he doubted Lily would tell anyone. She didn't like him, and Sirius wasn't in a hurry to tell everyone he'd had a cozy little talk with _Lily Evans_, anyway. She was nice and she was well-liked, but there were other girls that he'd rather be associated with.

'Well?' Remus said urgently. 'What happened?'

'Erm.' He scrabbled at a decent explanation, looking for something that made sense. 'I went back to the common room, I looked for James but he wasn't there (that part was true, at least, he thought), and I didn't want to risk running into Filch so I just went up to bed.'

Remus was somehow looking crestfallen, or maybe it was just puzzlement.

'What happened with you?' Sirius asked quickly, hastily wanting to steer away from how he had spent his time.

'Well,' sighed Remus, putting down his paper, 'Peter came and met me after a while at about half past twelve. He said there was no sign of you both. We assumed you'd met but had some sort of run-in, so we waited for you, and then it got to one o'clock and we decided to give up on it. So we went up to bed.'

Sirius pondered this. 'I wonder what _did _happen with James,' he thought aloud.

'No idea,' said Remus. 'His bed was empty when we got up there last night. We didn't see him this morning either.'

'What if one of the teachers caught him and put him in detention - and - and he still is now?' gasped Peter fearfully.

'Don't be a prat, Wormy, they wouldn't give him detention at one in the morning,' Sirius said, rolling his eyes.

It was at that moment that James was seen coming towards them. Sirius didn't know what to expect, as he hadn't seen his best friend since late afternoon the day before, but whatever it was, it wasn't this. He was fresh-faced and his eyes were alight behind his little round glasses. He seemed to be bursting with inexplicable pride. He was wearing his Quidditch jumper and had shouldered his broom to give him another reason to walk to the Gryffindor table with his chest thrust out.

'Alright, losers,' he said chirpily. 'Lovely morning, isn't it?'

'Er...yeah, I suppose,' Sirius replied, as though he had just announced he was going to move to Mars. 'Listen, mate, what happened with you last night? I waited for you for ages, and you never showed up. Did you meet one of the teachers or something?' He fought to keep his tone calm.

James poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice and took a long gulp, leaving Sirius to wait for an answer and growing all the more agitated. It was as if James was doing it on purpose. Either that, or was using the time to formulate a reply.

'Well,' James began, infuriatingly slowly, 'I got up to the dormitory and realised I didn't have enough stuff for us to actually do the prank yet, and I knew you'd all be waiting at your stations and I couldn't risk going down there to meet all of you and tell you. So what I decided to do was take the secret passageway into Hogsmeade and see if I could nick some stuff from Zonko's for us.'

'Blimey, James, are you mad - going down to Hogsmeade...' Remus looked both surprised and angry.

'I didn't get any, in the end,' admitted James, shrugging, 'but I'll tell you what I did do. Faught a Dementor.'

The three of them emitted gasps of shock. Sirius, however, looked closely at James's overly bright hazel eyes.

'Nah, you didn't.'

'I did!' James said, offended. 'I did a Patronus and everything - it's a stag, same as my Animagus - '

'James!' warned Remus under his breath, as a preoccupied Professor McGonagall swept past them and stopped, frowning.

'Mr. Potter, what is that you are wearing?' she asked stiffly.

'My Quidditch jumper, Professor,' replied James cheerily, glancing down at it. 'Lovely and warm - '

'Well, it is not school uniform!' she interrupted. 'Lessons start in ten minutes! Proper uniform, please!' And with that she stalked off, clearly ruffled.

'What was all that about?' said James in amazement.

'Dunno...Yesterday some first-years turned all her quills back into birds again by accident and they started flapping around the classroom,' Remus put in vaguely. '...Total chaos. And she can't turn them into quills again so she's probably still in a huff about it.'

Sirius stared at Remus, still leafing through his paper. 'How'd you know that?' he asked.

'The stuff you hear on Prefect patrols, it's quite amusing, really,' Remus said, smiling. 'Lily and I (Sirius stiffened at the name) were walking past the classroom when it happened...you should have seen the mess.' He shuddered.

'Anyway, never mind that, why are you wearing a bloody Quidditch jumper?' Sirius questioned, turning to James, who was still stood up with his broom impressively displayed on the table next to him.

'I woke up early and thought I'd squeeze in some Quidditch practice,' James said easily. 'You know. Just so I'm top-notch when I'm Seeker again this year.' He took a refreshing breath. 'Well, I'd better go and change. Potions first today - wouldn't want to go spilling anything on my jumper.' He winked, shouldered his broom again, and left.

'What's gotten into him?' Sirius asked, though he couldn't help keeping a note of panic from his voice. He had seemed so smug and satisfied - well, he always was, but today the smugness was on overdrive. Did he know something Sirius didn't?

'Why's he so obsessed with Quidditch?' Remus said, shaking his head. 'I know he loves it, but he's never practiced this early in the year...this is before trials have even started.'

'Must just love his new Cleansweep Five,' Sirius guessed, and in his mind he told himself this was true, yet he couldn't bring himself to eat anything.

**OoO**

'...James?'

The dank Potions room, which smelled fusty and damp, was foggy with smoke and alight with thirty crackling fires beneath bubbling cauldrons. Slughorn was busy peering at other students' handiwork, and Sirius had taken advantage of this to turn to James and start a conversation with him that had been nagging him since that morning. However, he had been unable to do this since Slughorn had enthusiastically taken up twenty minutes of the lesson explaining to them the importance of adding an ounce of dragon liver to their Deflating Draft. Cloaked by the heavy steam, occasional bangs and splutters, Sirius felt it was safe to start conversation without being heard.

'Yeah, Sirius?' James said casually, looking up from his dandelion roots and flashing him a mega watt smile.

'Did you really produce a Patronus last night?'

James's grin flickered, but he didn't falter to drop his trademark smirk. 'Yeah, I did,' he said. Then he shot him a serious look. 'Why? You don't believe me?'

'No, course I do, mate,' replied Sirius quickly. 'But you said it was the same as your - your - (he mouthed the word 'Animagus', just in case there was anybody particularly prone to gossip around) - and you know we haven't even managed it yet...'

Since they had figured out that Remus was in fact a fully-fledged werewolf - once a month, but still, it was a pretty shocking revelation - they had decided, sometime around the end of their third year, and much to Remus's protests, that they would try and become unregistered Animagi. This meant they would all be able to turn into animals at will and therefore able to sneak into the Whomping Willow, the temperamental tree that stood guard over the passageway to a place called the Shrieking Shack where Remus transformed every month so as not to harm anyone around him. Doing this meant they could keep Remus company as animals and also remain safe, but becoming Animagi had proved to be an extremely difficult feat, even with the two cleverest people in the whole of the year heading the operation. After they had decided which animal they felt the most comfortable turning into, it was then that they had earned their nicknames: Sirius was aiming to transform into a dog, hence the name 'Padfoot'; Peter wanted to turn into a rat, which everyone thought to be a wise decision (coming from Peter, a wise decision was something close to a miracle) because someone needed to activate the branch that froze the wild branches of the Willow without getting hurt. The rat fetish of Peter's therefore gave him the nickname 'Wormtail', and James, who had made the most progress in his endevours to become an animal, was attempting to transform into a stag. When he had first begun trying, all that happened was a large pair of antlers sprouting from the top of his head, and it was amid much laughter and teasing that the nickname 'Prongs' emerged. Remus, of course, got his nickname 'Moony' from his not-so-pleasant connections with the moon, and though he showed dislike towards it at first, the remaining three Marauders helped him see the lighter side of it. Nobody could understand why the Marauders called each other the names they did, but could only assume it was something to do with one of their endless personal jokes, and in a way, it was.

'Yeah, well, I'm trying, aren't I!' snapped James a little defensively, stirring his solution slightly more violently than necessary.

'I never said you weren't!' Sirius argued. 'All I'm saying is, how can you be sure your Patronus is a stag when you haven't even figured out how to turn into one yet?'

'It just_ was_, alright?' said James in a very final tone.

A slightly peeved Sirius went back to chopping his own dandelion roots, although his mind was on other things. How come James was suddenly able to produce a Patronus? They had tried once or twice, as a joke and not really expecting anything, but were unsucessful and had decided that piles of homework _and _trying to become Animagi was enough for any one person. So why was he suddenly overcome with this strange newfound ability? Maybe he had practised over the summer, but even so, he had thought that only skilled wizards would be able to use a Patronus. He didn't doubt James's talent or exceptional abilities for a second, but they were just fifteen. James was very clever, but he was no Albus Dumbledore.

For the umpteenth time that day, one question resurfaced in his mind: what _really _happened last night with James? He failed to formulate an answer each time the question entered his thoughts, and he felt bad for considering it, but he was almost sure James was lying about why he had never showed up. It was the strange sparkle in his eyes and his lightbulb smile. Sirius chanced a glance at his best friend and saw that he was crushing his Snargaluff pod with exaggerated force. Did James think Sirius was jealous? It sent a bolt of panic go right through him. It wasn't the case, of course. He was just confused and a little suspicious. Who wouldn't be?

Sirius, not wanting to spend another minute thinking about James for it would only distract him even more from his work, cast his gaze around the room and flipped his hair out of his eyes to peer at the clock. Instead, his eyes found Lily, stood at her cauldron looking extremely pleased with herself as she stirred what was no doubt a perfect concoction. Slughorn frequently told the whole class of Lily's Potions success no matter how much James groaned loudly and obviously. She was undeniably Slughorn's star pupil.

As if she could feel his grey eyes upon her, Lily suddenly looked up and met Sirius right in the eyes through the shimmering plumes of smoke - Sirius, taken by surprise, continued to look at her, and then shot her a wink. He dropped his head to finish his Deflating Draft; there were ten minutes left of the lesson and it wasn't even half-finished. He felt slightly embarassed, though he wasn't sure why, and forced back last night's memories from creeping up into his mind's eye. He really needed to pull himself together.

'Merlin's beard, Lily, you've produced a perfect Deflating Draft!' boomed a familiar voice from the other side of the classroom after a while. Sirius jerked his head up to see a not unfamiliar scene: a beaming Slughorn swelling with delight over Lily, who was slightly pink and smiling modestly. 'Twenty points to Gryffindor!'

'Know-it-all,' Sirius muttered, noting with relief that he didn't regret thinking it. Becoming even _close _to sensitive towards Lily Evans' feelings would have made him question his sanity.


	7. Six: Flying Colours

_A/N:Berlin was great! I saw the Berlin wall, I went shopping, I went to all the monumnets and in the TV Tower. Anyway this chapter was supposed to be posted earlier but I've had my photography exam! And I did a Maths exam today, I know I've failed miserably. Anyway, enough! Read on!  
><em>

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><p><strong>Six<br>Flying Colours**

He didn't realise it until the time, but Sirius was exceptionally glad when Friday was over and done with. This startled him, as he usually basked in the glory of his first five days at the place where he felt he truly belonged. However, this first week at Hogwarts wasn't quite the same as the previous four. His best friend was behaving even more self-absorbed than he already did, and he had secretly listened to his own best friend's love interest's problems - and sort of consoled her. The situation would have seemed slightly better, somehow, if the girl wasn't someone he found excessively annoying and therefore hardly even talked to, and when he did, it was to join in with the frequent slanging match that occured between she and aforementioned best friend.

It was for these reasons that Sirius flopped down on his four-poster bed on Friday evening more grateful than ever. He had a three-roll-parchment Transfiguration essay to finish, but, as always, he would write down some drabble at the last minute like he normally did. It worked every time.

'Hey, Padfoot,' greeted Remus as he entered the dormitory and discarded his school bag and books. He seemed tired, but nonetheless never failed to wear his usual modest smile.

'Alright, mate,' Sirius replied, putting his hands behind his head as he relaxed on the comfy bed. 'Where were you at dinner?'

The three Marauders had been present, but Remus never showed up and hadn't told any of them where he was. James had said he would probably be at the library and waved it away with a careless hand, and was indeed proven right as Remus explained now:

'Ah, sorry, I realised after Care of Magical Creatures that I had to do the Charms homework, and I went to the library, and well...I forgot to turn up for dinner.' He smiled apologetically. 'I forgot to tell you, sorry,' he added, with a nod at the stack of tarnished library books that topped the pile of his new school ones.

'No worries, Moony,' Sirius said, and then leaped off the bed to curb his sudden curiosity. 'What books did you take out, anyway?'

He picked the three library books out and studied the titles whilst Remus was changing into everyday wear. _An Extensive Study Of Werewolves And Other Associated Part-Human Monsters...Moon Man: My Struggle With A Curse...Warding Off Werewolves: The Survival Guide To Beating The Bite!_

'I thought I'd read up on it,' Remus shrugged. 'I need to get a better understanding of my...problem, after all.' He gave Sirius a small smile. Sirius knew his condition bothered him, and admired the way he was trying to handle things via his own sensible methods as opposed to the jokey or hide-everything-behind-a-smile attitude that he or James might adopt.

'Moony, no offence, I understand and everything, but don't you think you're making it slightly obvious taking these books out?'

Remus laughed. 'Don't worry, Madam Pince didn't suspect a thing,' he grinned. 'Still, I'm going to lock these away in my trunk when I'm not reading them...don't want anyone knowing who, you know, doesn't need to.'

Sirius nodded. 'Where are the others?'

'I think Peter's still eating dinner, and James is probably with some members of his fan club in the common room.' He rolled his eyes.

They shared a laugh. 'Well, I'm going down, anyway. Are you coming?'

'In a minute,' Remus replied, indicating his school things.

Sirius wandered downstairs with his hands subconsciously stuck in his pockets. Like Remus had predicted, James was talking - or probably bragging - with a group of giggly fourth-years fawning over him like a swarm of midges. He recognized them as the annoying, gossipy girls who often liked to sit in the stands at every single Gryffindor Quidditch match without fail, and Sirius had a feeling they weren't just there for the game. Still, he had his fair share of admirers - he wasn't on the Quidditch team (yet), but that didn't mean girls didn't know just who he was ('Black? You mean _the _Sirius Black?'). In fact, Sirius thought with a feeling of satisfaction, he was almost as high in the girl stakes as James. Unlike James, however, he didn't have his one true love whom he refused to give up on. Instead, he thought that the whole tedious idea of having a girlfriend was far-fetched and much too high maintenance. He was like James in many ways, but most of all in the fact that he enjoyed the attention he got from girls but did not consider them as serious dating material. Maybe that's why they were best friends.

_They were best friends_. How could he deny it? Why was he getting so paranoid just because James forgot about some simple practical joke supplies, and decided he wanted to practice Quidditch in the morning? James loved Quidditch, of course. It was nothing out of the ordinary. They were best friends, so why wasn't Sirius acting like one?

He made the desicion there and then to tell James about the conversation he'd had with Lily Evans in the early hours. He was just about to march over to him, and tell the ridiculous fourth-years to bugger off, when something distracted him.

The very girl whom Sirius was about to speak of had just strode into the common room, her blazing red hair sheilding her face so Sirius couldn't make out her expression. Mary MacDonald was, as expected, walking beside her chatting animatedly with a book tucked in her arms, and she didn't notice him, so he assumed Lily had kept her in the dark about what had happened. Either that, or she was just very good at being unobservant.

Sirius nochalantly followed them with his eyes and watched them take a seat at two saggy armchairs coupled by the lit fire. He analysed Lily's face; she was talking to Mary as enthusiastically as she her, and didn't seem unhappy at all. No more trouble from Snivellus, then.

A wide face suddenly loomed into view.

'Alright, Sirius,' said someone Sirius recognized as Arnold Peasegood, his fellow fifth-year and roommate whom Sirius always found rather boring and a bit of a suck-up. He was stout with curly brown hair and round blue eyes.

'Hey, Arnie,' Sirius sighed, trying not to look agitated.

'You okay?' Arnold asked hurriedly, annoyingly quick to notice how his mood had dropped.

'Yeah, I'm fine, what's up?' Sirius barked, wishing he would get to the point.

'Oh...well, I heard you were trying out for Beater tomorrow, and I wondered about trying out too...not because you are, or anything - I just wanted to know if there were any tips you could, you know, give me.' He looked up at him hopefully.

Sirius blinked. 'Erm...' In all honesty, Arnold was nothing like a Beater should be - he looked as though he couldn't harm a fly. In fact, he was nothing like _any_ Quidditch player should be. Quidditch was the last thing Sirius expected Arnold to be assosciated with.

'Sorry mate,' drawled a voice from behind Sirius, and suddenly an arm he recognized was slung casually over his shoulder, 'but if anyone's _made _for Gryffindor beater, it's old Sirius here.' James gave Sirius's forearm a playful shove.

Arnold then took that as his cue to retreat, looking extremely forlorn.

Both Sirius and James howled with laughter. They didn't notice this, but Lily looked over to see what they were laughing about (something pathetic, she guessed) and then gave them both a haughty roll of her eyes.

'So, Padfoot,' James said when their laughter had subsided, 'were you going to ask me something just then? Before you were cornered by old Podgy Peasegood?'

'Yeah, erm - ' Sirius paused, daring himself to say it. He didn't want to spoil the good mood James was in, and was enjoying it too much to ruin it. What did it matter, anyway? It was only plain old Lily Evans.

James waited with an eager grin on his face, the same as the one he wore when he was eleven, this element of his features unchanged no matter how much he had matured.

'...I just wondered if I could have a go on your Cleansweep Five,' Sirius finished lamely.

'Course you can!' he replied instantly. 'I'll go and get it.' He sprinted past him and rushed up to his dormitory to collect his beloved broomstick.

'It's for trials tomorrow, I just wanted to practice!' Sirius shouted after him, though he couldn't suppress the feeling that he was explaining himself for his own benefit more than anyone else's.

**OoO**

The morning came with a cloudless sky and a light breeze; according to James, these were perfect conditions. 'It's looking good for us, mate,' he said excitedly, shouldering his broom.

Sirius picked up his Shooting Star a little half-heartedly and followed James out of the empty dormitory. Well, near-empty. Arnold had taken James's more than insensitive advice (James prefered 'constructive criticism') and decided not to try out for Beater after all. Remus and Peter were probably just finishing breakfast and had said they would watch tryouts in the stands.

Shrugging off the uneasy nervous feeling bubbling inside him, Sirius followed a confidently striding James onto the Quidditch pitch. He was fond of Quidditch, admittedly not as much as James was, but he knew enough about it and had flown a broomstick for long enough to be confident that he had a good chance of getting onto the team. But there was a little piece of doubt nagging at him no matter how hard he tried to beat it back. He just wasn't sure that he could compete with the impeccable talent of James Potter on the Quidditch pitch.

'Come on, Padfoot, you'll be the last one there!' joked James, as he met with the other hopefuls outside the changing rooms. Sirius bounded over to his best friend, who was clapping the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain Ernie Abbott on the back. Abbott was tall, and broad, Gryffindor Chaser with short blonde hair and a rather cheesy grin.

'Alright, everyone, I'm going to be putting you all individually through some simple run-throughs, one category at a time, and then I'll announce my choices for players at the end of trials,' he instructed. 'Keepers first, everyone, let's go!'

Sirius watched as the three Keeper hopefuls lined up to be put through tryouts in which they had to save five Quaffles being flung at them. Third-year Eleanor Boot did impressively well, Sirius noted, his anticipation mounting as he stood with the other students trying out for Beater.

James of course was stunning on his Cleansweep Five and put all others to shame; dismounting after his trial sent an uproar of applause from the stands. Sirius scrambled forward and mounted his broom when the Beaters were announced for trials, grasping his club in his hand, and with a sharp kick he rose gracefully into the air.

Excitement flooded through him as he left the ground; this felt easy, and almost as natural as walking. Looking around with interest from this new and strange perspective, he peered at the stands to see if he could spot Remus and Peter watching. There they were, giving him over-enthusiastic waves - and, sitting three or four rows back, there was Lily Evans, easily identified by her startlingly red hair and omnipresent best friend Mary MacDonald. Sirius nearly fell off his broom. In all the times he'd accompanied Remus and Peter in the stands watching James try out for Seeker (and get it, obviously), he'd never noticed Lily sitting there with them. She'd never come to Quidditch tryouts before, and he'd know because James would babble on about it afterwards if she had. So why the sudden change of thought?

Sirius took a double take as, staring at Lily for longer than necessary, he realised she'd just...waved at him. Sirius quickly denied this. She could have been waving at anyone. Finally listening to Abbott's protests to get to the centre of the Quidditch pitch, he swivelled his broom away from Lily Evans and met Abbott for his tryout. At the end of it, he needn't have worried. He didn't miss one of the five Bludgers that sped towards him, thrusting them a hundred yards in the opposite direction, and felt elated as he gradually came to meet the earth, even more so when he noticed James applauding and whooping him with a grin a mile wide.

'You were great!'

'Thanks, mate, you were too, obviously...'

'I know!' James cried. 'Trust me, it is _in the bag_. You and me, playing together, eh?'

'You really think?'

'Yeah,' said James with undeniable certainty, practically brimming over with excitement. 'Definitely. Come on, there's only the two other Chasers left to try out, and by the looks of it, they're all pretty pathetic.' He indicated the straggly line-up of Chaser hopefuls, all of whom appeared to be worn out and kicking at the ground looking extremely half-hearted.

'They look promising,' Sirius pondered.

James laughed shortly. 'If we get two rubbish Chasers, then at least we've got one decent one.' Then he added, as an afterthought, 'Plus, no one cares if the Chasers are bad, because the Seeker's what it's all about, and I hate to sound big-headed (Sirius snorted loudly) but most people come to matches just to see me.'

'Oh _James_, you arrogant toerag,' said Sirius playfully, quoting one of Lily's overused insults. James shrugged as though he couldn't help being so brilliant.

'Hey, speaking of Evans, have you seen her, she's showed up.'

'What? Where?' asked James too quickly.

'There...' said Sirius, vaguely pointing. 'Near the back, look. She's with Mary, obviously - but she never usually comes to tryouts.' Sirius looked at James, whose forehead was creased in thought. 'Does she?' he added, hoping it would make him sound more casual.

'No, she doesn't,' murmured James. 'Weird. Hey, see, I told you, Padfoot! My devious charm is finally starting to work on her.' He tried giving her a wave, exaggerated so that she couldn't miss it, with an exuberant expression on his face. She did not return the wave and instead shot him an extremely rude hand gesture.

'See.'

'She gave you the finger!' scoffed Sirius.

'Aggression is the first sign of affection, Black,' James retorted, tapping his nose.

Sirius just gave him a sceptical look, but was always amused by James's undeterred attempts to get Lily to like him.

The Chaser tryouts finished, and Abbott told everyone to wait a few minutes whilst he decided on the players, so James motioned for Remus and Peter to come down from the stands and meet them.

'James, you were just _amazing_!' breathed Peter the moment they were within earshot. 'The way you flew, the accuracy, just - really - '

'Yes, we know, we know,' said Sirius, rolling his eyes.

'You were too, Padfoot,' said Remus kindly. 'Easily the best out of all the Beaters - '

'Yeah, but they've got to choose another one, too, haven't they?' said James. 'I reckon it'll be that Linda Peakes, you know that sixth-year? Yeah, I noticed, she's pretty good for a girl.'

Hollie Sutcliffe, a dark-haired fifth-year standing nearby who Sirius noticed had tried out for Keeper, must have overheard, because she gave James a shove. 'Shut it, Potter!' she said, though rather jokily - and, Sirius noticed with amusement, with a hint of flirtaciousness.

'I was joking, Sutcliffe,' James assured her with his hands up as though he was under arrest. 'Though I did notice you up there, and I must say you're in with a good chance for Keeper...pretty agile. Flexible.' He winked cheekily and Hollie slapped him on the shoulder, though she looked anything but put out.

Sirius had the feeling that a conversation was about to start - one filled with winks and innuendos - were it not for Abbott striding out of the changing rooms to rescue them.

'Right! Taking your trials into account, plus how much you look comfortable up in the air and how well you fly, I've chosen the best players for the job. Keeper will be Eleanor Boot.'

As Eleanor squealed and her friends clapped, Hollie was left looking extremely disappointed.

'Don't worry, Hollie, I'll cheer you up later,' James assured her, waggling his eyebrows.

'...Seeker goes to James Potter - '

The four Marauders weren't the only ones cheering; Sirius noticed that most people in the stands were applauding too. He pulled James into a one-armed hug; James looked delighted, but could not pretend he hadn't seen it coming.

'The two Beaters will be Sirius Black and Linda Peakes...'

Sirius couldn't stop grinning broadly as James, Remus and Peter whooped appreciatively - and he might have been mistaken, but a smattering of applause issued from the stands as well.

'And the two remaining Chasers go to David Scott and Amelia Bones. Thanks everyone for coming and our first match is on...' Abbott glanced down at the clipboard tucked beneath his arm. '...November the second against Hufflepuff. Practice at 5pm Wednesdays and Saturdays, be there!'

The group shuffled away and branched out into various directions. Hollie waved a reluctant goodbye to James to join her friends, who were consoling her about her loss at becoming Keeper.

'So, what now?' Remus asked, as the four or them dawdled towards the castle entrance.

'I don't know about you, Padfoot, but I'm starving,' said James. 'Breakfast, I think - '

'Breakfast's finished,' Remus told them. James groaned.

'Off to the kitchens, then?' Sirius suggested. The others nodded in agreement; they visited the kitchens for food more frequently than the Great Hall itself. Sirius's stomach growled at the thought of the festoons of delicious food the house elves were only too pleased to bring them. He was just deciding that he fancied a couple of bacon sandwiches when he subconsciously looked over his shoulder and noticed that Lily Evans and Mary had disappeared from their seat in the stands. He didn't know why, but the memory of Lily waving shyly, seemingly at him, made his mood lighten considerably.


	8. Seven: Common Ground

_A/N: Hey, it's been a while since I posted another chapter so here it is. I always find that when writing conversations between Sirius and Lily it seems to go on forever and they end up discussing about 10 different topics on top of the one I intended them to talk about. Chemistry, eh? Yeah, so that's why you'll find that a typical Sirius/Lily moment actually lasts a whole chapter. Anyway, hope everyone's having a great Easter, please R&R!_

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><p><strong>Seven<strong>

**Common Ground**

Quidditch practice the following Wednesday evening was miles more fun than Sirius had first thought. He'd expected Abbott to be bossy and controlling, but he was in fact very easy-going and allowed the hour training session to become more of a free practice. Even the two Chasers, who had appeared to lack confidence on a broomstick, proved to play reasonably well, and Amelia Bones in the year below, whom Sirius had thought to be swotty and without a sense of humour, was witty and rather quick with a Quaffle (she had shot it at him with a great deal of force after he'd called her an insufferable know-it-all). On a whole, the session had ended on a high - even with a bruise blossoming on Sirius's shoulder - and Sirius felt he, at least, was on better terms with everyone in the team.

Sirius and James were staggering back up to the castle with their arms thrown around each other in an extremely good mood. The sun was just beginning to set, and the last of the golden rays were spilling out onto the castle grounds. They were the first ones to reach the oak front doors; in fact, Sirius noted, casting his gaze back at the deserted Quidditch pitch, they were the _only _ones to reach the front doors, as everyone else was in the changing rooms. He had a feeling that James liked to stay in his Quidditch robes walking into dinner so he looked as impressive as possible.

They pushed open the front doors into the Entrance Hall, which Sirius expected to be empty. He was, however, mistaken.

Two people were in the midst of a heated argument, standing a few feet apart beside the grand marble staircase. One had fiery red hair, deep green eyes and a face which was usually rather pretty but at the moment was contorted with anger. The other was sallow, with long greasy hair, and was taller than the first, but seemed to shrink under her fierce temper.

'...Lily, I've _told _you, I still want to be friends, but I have other friends too, and I don't see what's wrong with that!'

'I wouldn't mind that you had other friends as long as they weren't vile little slimeballs desperate to join You-Know-Who! You _know _how much I hate them, Sev, and you go running off with them after I've been friends with you nearly your whole life, your _only _friend - '

'You were not my _only _friend!' Severus Snape interrupted, sounding both angry and a little embarassed. 'Why are you so bothered, anyway? If you hate me and my friends that much, why don't you just leave me alone?'

Sirius glanced tentatively at James; he was staring at Lily and Snape and looked almost as angry as they did. His hand gripped his wand tightly. Sirius had a feeling that a number of hexes were running through his mind and he was busy selecting the most painful one to use on Snape.

'I still want to be friends with you, Sev, of course I do!' Lily was saying exasperatedly. 'But you're not the same anymore - I've tried to pretend I wasn't bothered by it but I am! You're so different when you're with them - '

'Come on, Lily!' Snape yelled. 'You keep saying I've changed - of course I have! People do change, you need to grow up and get used to it! You just can't handle the fact that _I _have other friends now, and you're jealous - '

'Me? _Jealous_? Oh, please, Sev, don't make me laugh!' Lily spat derisively. 'I'd rather be best friends with - with _James Potter _than be friends with those ugly - '

James flinched at the mention of his name, but seemed to be rooted to the spot and frozen with anger to do or say anything. Without thinking, Sirius pulled out his wand.

'Oh, yeah, I knew you'd mention Potter somewhere along the line,' Snape said scathingly. 'You know what, Lily, I don't want to hear it. You want to be friends with _that_ pig-headed bully, then fine. He's so far up his own arse I'm suprised he can even see clearly - '

At that moment both Sirius and James walked over with their wands brandished like swords. Anger was pulsing through Sirius - the Furnunculus Curse blocking everything else in his mind, he made for Snape, but Snape had noticed them and was already storming off towards the dungeons.

'OI! Snape, come back here, you coward!' James roared, who seemed ready to explode.

'Sod off, Potter!' Snape spat with his back to them, disappearing behind the cold dungeon wall. James aimed a vicious curse at him, but it hit the stone instead, blasting a fragment of brick away so that it spewed in all directions.

Sirius turned back to look at Lily, who met his eyes for a fraction of a second - and an inexplicable feeling hovered between them. A moment later, it had vanished - replaced by the look of dislike which had been there before.

'Sorry, Evans, just had to save your neck there,' James shrugged, pocketing his wand like he had had just rescued her from a blazing fire.

'You didn't _save_ my anything,' she snarled. 'I was doing just fine on my own.'

'Yeah,' laughed James sceptically. 'He's dangerous, that one. Especially now he's started becoming pally with those wannabe Death Eaters...shame, eh?'

'_Don't_,' she warned angrily, 'even get me started. You're as bad as him, you know.'

'Me?' asked James incredulously. 'Hey, _I'm _not the one who aspires to have a career in the Dark Arts! Merlin's pants, Evans, I just attempted to curse Snivellus for you in a fit of gallantry and you repay me with insults! I say...'

'I didn't _ask_ for it!' she replied furiously. 'And you weren't doing it for my benefit, you were doing it for your own! Anything to make you look better than everyone else! You're _so _annoying!'

'Best friends don't insult each other, remember, Evans?' James reminded her with a wink.

'I didn't say we were best friends,' Lily replied disgustedly. 'All I said was - and I regret it now, believe me - that I'd _rather _be friends with you than - '

'Excuses, excuses,' sighed James. 'I wouldn't mind being best friends with you, actually, Evans, despite how boring you are. I'd show you a thing or two.'

'You're disgusting,' she said in she pushed past them and rushed upstairs, hurling insults at James and Sirius as they laughed.

'I love it when you're fiesty!' James shouted at her, to which Lily gave him the hand gesture again as she flung open the door to the moving staircases and slammed it shut.

'Nothing like a bit of drama to work up an appetite,' James said cheerfully, pocketing his wand. Then he grimaced. 'Although the sight of Snivellus has put me off a bit.' He shrugged. 'So! Dinner, I think.' He walked towards the Great Hall, where the smell of delicious food and sound of excitable chatter was wafting from the double doors. Sirius watched him in amused amazement.

'Er, James?'

James spun around.

'Aren't you going to get changed?' Sirius looked down and noticed how muddy his Quidditch robes were. James's boots and trousers were flecked with dirt.

'I'll miss dinner,' he said casually. 'Aren't you coming?'

'I'll just go and get changed first,' Sirius decided. 'See you in a minute.'

He took the stairs three at a time, shaking his head at James's antics. He was obviously wanting to attract some attention when he walked into dinner wearing his Quidditch robes, and using 'missing dinner' as an excuse, because he could get dinner from the kitchens anyway.

Minutes later, a huffing Sirius reached the Fat Lady, doubled over with a stitch. He almost regretted being in Gryffindor, as walking seven flights of stairs was extremely tiring even for him.

'Password?' said the Fat Lady.

'Give me a minute, will you?' said Sirius, getting his breath back. 'Erm...Welsh Green!'

She swung open to admit him.

Sirius scrambled through the portrait hole and, oblivious to anyone who might be in the common room (though it looked empty, as everyone was at dinner), he ran upstairs to literally jump into the shower and get changed. His stomach rumbling in protest, he rushed back down the stairs and across the common room, only to be halted by a voice that made his heart almost stop.

'Congratulations.'

Sirius swivelled around on the spot, mere feet away from the portrait hole. He was so close to getting food - and he _was_ hungry - plus James would wonder why he was taking so long. But on the other hand, he was intruiged to find out just what she was doing here.

'We're making quite a habit out of this, Evans,' Sirius drawled, finally spotting her sat in a chair in a shadowy corner of the common room.

Lily said nothing.

'Er, what did you just say?' Sirius pressed on.

'I said, "Congratulations". You know, for making Beater. You must be proud,' Lily answered, with something that sounded like sarcasm hidden in her voice.

'Er,' repeated Sirius, who had been thinking about anything but Quidditch and his recent recruitment onto the House team. 'Yeah. Thanks, Evans,' Sirius said relucantly. Then, before he could stop himself, he added, 'I noticed you in the stands - the wave was much appreciated.' He winked, though he wasn't entirely sure if she could see it, since her face was hidden in half-shadow. He noticed she had her Herbology book open in her lap, and wondered whether she was taking advantage of the quiet common room to do some homework. A bizarre mental image of an evil mastermind sitting in a swivel chair petting a small cat suddenly popped into his head, and he fought back a laugh.

'I wasn't waving at you,' Lily answered, as though waving at him was a violation against nature. 'I was waving at Adam. Adam Wood?'

Sirius recognized him as the very attractive Quidditch-fanatic seventh-year who had tried out for Beater after he had. He sifted around in his memory and recalled James mentioning him last year; he had been Beater on the team back then. Sirius couldn't suppress a feeling of satisfaction that he'd beaten him to it this year (no pun intended, Sirius added as an afterthought and nearly laughed again), but on the other hand, he felt extremely stupid that he'd thought she'd been waving at him. Still, he played it cool.

'Ah, you see, I thought it was directed at _me_. I feel all disappointed now - that wave was what gave me the confidence to get through my trial.' He threw a hand over his heart in mock sadness.

'You don't _need_ any more confidence,' Lily stated. 'And I didn't mean that in a good way.'

'In what kind of way did you mean it, then?'

'I _meant_,' Lily began as if she were about to explain a simple task to a slow person, 'that if you had any more confidence you'd be thrown off your sodding broomstick with the size of it. That's what I meant.'

'And that's the last thing you'd want to happen, isn't it, Evans?' Sirius grinned.

Lily snorted. 'Oh, yeah,' she agreed, looking down at her book. Then after a few moments, she muttered, 'You're as bad as - '

'Bad as James, I know,' Sirius finished, and he could sense that his temper was rising, and he was about to take his problems out on Lily, though he knew it was hardly her fault. 'You know, everyone always compares me to James, so don't act like you're the first person to tell me so. I mean, he's my best mate, and we _are_ alike, but does that mean we're the same in every single thing that we do? No. It doesn't. For example, the other night I listened to you crying your eyes out over sodding _Severus Snape_, of all people - '

'Don't - ' Lily interrupted sharply, but Sirius wasn't finished, and it was difficult to stop.

' - _and _I was pretty nice about it, well, nicer than I usually am, and I can tell you _James _wouldn't have done that. Which brings me to my next point: _I_ can sometimes be a little bit more mature than James can, hard to believe, I know, and I can stand here and tell you honestly, without any stupid jokes or making fun of you, that James likes you, and only because James bloody doesn't have the guts to tell you himself! So, yeah, maybe me and James _are_ different, and James knows it, and I know it, so I'd like it if other people realized it too!' Sirius was left slightly breathless, and regretting the last part of what he had just said, but he couldn't hold it in.

Lily really did look lost for words. After a minute or two, in which she sat silently and Sirius breathed deeply and tried to control himself, Lily stood up slowly and walked, silently and cautiously, to where Sirius was standing. She eyed him with a mix of pity, concern and something that looked like disbelief.

'Sirius?' she asked tentatively. 'Are...are you okay?'

Sirius just nodded, unable to formulate a reply.

'I'm sorry,' she mumbled quietly, though she did sound genuine.

'It's okay,' he assured her. 'I was taking it out on you...none of that was _aimed_ at you anyway.' Then he corrected himself. 'Well - _some_ of it was aimed at you,' he added with a wink.

She looked annoyed, but it didn't reach her eyes. 'So, to whom was the rest of it aimed at?'

'Oh, you know,' said Sirius vaguely. He didn't want to tell her that it was aimed at his own brother and parents. They assumed he was just as trouble-making as James was, therefore coming to the conclusion that he was some sort of bad influence on Sirius. It was the reason why they never allowed him to visit James (although Sirius had told his parents he would be staying at Hogwarts for Christmas last year and had instead gone to stay with James, resulting in two weeks of absolute chaos in the Potter household).

Sensing that Sirius didn't want to talk about it, Lily skimmed over the subject gratefully. 'Erm, I don't know if I ever thanked you about the other night, when I was upset about Sev, but - well - thanks. That was, surprisingly decent of you,' she said with a half-smile.

Sirius was now beginning to think he would rather talk about his family issues than this. His insides squirmed uncomfortably; he somehow felt awkward and embarassed.

'It's - erm - it was fine,' he said pathetically. 'You're not a bad conversationalist, actually, Evans.'

She gave him a gentle shove. 'You didn't really talk much,' she mused. '_Or _give me advice which actually helped. Not that I'm complaining,' she added hurriedly after Sirius glared at her.

'I'm not that good at advice, to tell you the truth,' he admitted, scratching his head.

'I noticed,' she laughed. Then she paused, obviously hesitant to bring up the next subject for fear of his reaction. 'Er...I _do_ think you and James are different, you know.'

Sirius frowned at her. 'No you don't, you're just saying it because I told you that we were and you don't want to look bad.'

'No, I'm not _just saying it_!' Lily echoed, looking both sincere and a little offended. 'Honestly, I do think that you and James, well, you're not as alike as everyone thinks you are.' She cringed a little, probably because it sounded rather cliché.

'How'd you work that one out, eh, Evans?' Sirius asked, hiding his astonishment. He didn't at all think Lily was observant at that kind of thing - she was only observant, and startlingly accurate, at how cocky and braggy James was.

'After that night,' Lily said simply, and he knew what she was talking about since they had just discussed it. 'You told me anyway, in your little hissy fit you just had, even though I'd figured it out before you said it. James _wouldn't_ have done something like that.'

They both stared at each other in silence. Sirius took in what she had just said, and the fact that she had said it too somehow made it easier to understand. James, so deeply obsessed with her yet too proud to admit it, wouldn't have been able to sit and listen to Lily talk about her straining friendship with Snape without either making fun of her or storming off to hunt Snape down and hex him into the next century.

'Yeah,' Sirius said eventually, 'but you don't know James as well as me, I guess.' He was confused about why he had just said it, but came to the conclusion that he felt he needed to defend James in some way. He thought of James eating dinner without him, wondering why the hell he was talking so long to get changed, and he felt a pang of guilt. He tried to assure himself that he was doing nothing wrong, but if someone walked into the common room and saw that it was empty except for Sirius and Lily engaged in a meaningful conversation, and James somehow got wind of it, he would interpret things very differently.

'He doesn't _really_ like me, does he?' Lily said quietly, wrinkling her nose. It was difficult to place her tone; it flitted between disbelief, sarcasm, and dread.

Sirius wasn't sure how to answer this at all. But he'd said it, twice now, actually, and thought that once more couldn't hurt. Besides, she geniunely hated him, so it wasn't exactly about to change. Then again, Sirius countered with an inexplicable feeling of panic, James acted like he hated Lily, and the truth could not be more different. Could it be the case with Lily, too?

Sirius decided on, 'Er...yeah, he does.' He felt uncomfortable, like James was there with them.

Lily's face was again unreadable. Then she definitely looked unconvinced, before frowning with anger swimming in her eyes. 'You're joking, and it's not funny!' she said firmly.

'I am not.'

Now she just looked gobsmacked as she realised Sirius wasn't being sarcastic or joking.

'Did you hear what I just said? I could tell you, without stupid jokes, or making fun of you...' he trailed off so he didn't have to repeat the rest.

'But he hates me,' she stated simply.

'You _think _he does,' Sirius argued.

'Why would you tell me this, though?' Lily said suspiciously. 'If you're supposed to be _best friends_ - '

'We are,' Sirius said through gritted teeth; then he reminded himself that Lily wasn't the one who kept making him feel like he was betraying his best friend. 'I'm just bloody fed up of you snapping at each other all the time, and _James _won't tell you he's so obsessed with you so I thought I might as well say it.'

'You hate me too,' Lily reminded him. 'You join in with me and him whenever we're on at each other - '

'Merlin's pants, Evans, you think I'd be stood here talking to you if I hated you?'

'So you don't hate me?'

Sirius thought about this. 'I've never hated you,' he admitted, which was true. 'I just think you're boring, and swotty, and too clever for your own good, and you haven't exactly been nice to my best mate so maybe it's a matter of _principle_ that I should - '

'You can stop now, thanks!' Lily interrupted, rolling her eyes. 'And he's the one who's never been nice to me, actually.'

'He was _willing_ to be nice,' Sirius corrected her. 'He just wasn't nice to Snivellus, which is about all he deserves, and I've just said the same isn't-nice-to-your-best-mate-matter-of-principle thing about James so I suppose I can't tell you that _you _yourselfdidn't have a reason to hate him.' His brow furrowed in an attempt to wonder if what he had just said made sense.

'I suppose James was right about Sev, after all,' Lily sighed, and then shook her head. 'Did I just say that? Ugh.'

'Do _you_ hate him? James, I mean?' Sirius asked, his heart pumping ten times faster in anticipation for the response.

'It's hard to like someone who insults you on a daily basis,' Lily said seriously, though she nearly cracked a smile. 'And I still think he's pig-headed, and selfish, and an arrogant arsehole.' It was then that she couldn't stop a smile from showing. 'And I don't believe that he likes me.'

Sirius didn't want to persuade her otherwise. Four years of insults and arguments and banter wouldn't just be forgotten with a simple 'well, actually, he's kind of in love with you.'

'Fine,' Sirius said casually, 'if that's what you want to believe. Later, Evans. It's been fun.'

He turned around with his hands in his pockets and climbed out of the portrait hole, glad to be away from her. He didn't even know why he was over-thinking her response to his do-you-hate-James question. She hadn't actually said she hated him, but she did say he was pig-headed, selfish and an arrogant arsehole, and that could only mean that she disliked him, at least. Sirius was slightly disturbed at how this seemed to be a comfort to him, and decided that the faint feeling he'd had in his stomach when he was talking to Lily was down to the fact that he was extremely hungry.


	9. Eight: Not So Brotherly Love

_A/N: The time is ripe for another chapter! We get to see a lot more of Regulus here which I thought was interesting because Sirius would most likely ignore his brother since he hated him so much. But Regulus sort of, comes along...anyway, I know towards the end you could argue that Sirius acts a bit like a hypocrite, but I have an excuse: when Sirius does it, it's to someone he really hates. OK. I'll stop talking._

* * *

><p><strong>Eight<strong>

**Not-So-Brotherly Love  
><strong>

'Where've you been, Padfoot?' demanded James, as Sirius came skidding down the marble staircase only to collide with the three other Marauders whom he had been about to meet. Several more people were swarming out of the Great Hall; evidently, Sirius had just missed dinner.

'Er - trunk wouldn't open,' Sirius invented wildly, almost regretting that he'd even talked to Lily in the first place and therefore blaming her for the grumble in his stomach. 'I think Arnie put some sort of charm on it to get me back for getting Beater...'

James looked at him oddly, then shrugged, deciding not to argue. 'Right. Well, we were about to go back up to the common room - reschedule for the big prank we were about to do, you know - '

'Before you let us all down, yeah,' Sirius finished irritably, then instantly regretted what he had just said. 'Mate - sorry - '

'No worries,' James assured him, flashing him his usual smile.

'I'm gonna go and get some dinner,' Sirius decided, his mouth watering at the very thought of hot, delicious food. 'I'll come back to the common room afterwards. You can fill me in on the date for the prank, okay?'

James nodded. Sirius waved a hasty goodbye to Remus and Peter and then practically sprinted down to the kitchens.

It had been a close call. If Sirius had left the common room about five minutes later, James, Remus and Peter would have walked in on he and Lily, and that was something he hated to think about. He already knew as soon as he saw James's face that he wasn't going to tell him where he'd really been only minutes previously. It would hurt him too much, and start an unthinkably uncommon argument between the two of them, if James knew that - thanks to Sirius - Lily was now aware of how much James did like her, and that Lily hadn't admitted to liking him back. It was doing him a favour, really, if James knew nothing of it. Or at least that's what Sirius fought to keep telling himself as he reached the entrance to the kitchens.

**OoO**

There was a Hogsmeade visit planned for the last Saturday in September. Though nothing much had happened since he had talked to Lily in a one-to-one conversation for the second time, and almost gotten caught, Sirius was very much looking forward to going, as he was starting to get tired of catching himself looking at Lily in lessons, and she would look awkwardly back. They never quite knew what to say to each other, even when Sirius was contributing to the sometimes heated conversations that occured between James and Lily at the House table or in the common room. Sirius copied James's method of a balance between bragging and light-hearted insults, but even so, he couldn't say them with enough meaning now they'd talked - _seriously_ talked - about someone who was in their very presence, and the constant reminder of James' obliviousness to this was getting to the pair of them.

With the promise of a hopefully Lily-free day (if she didn't go into the same shops as the Marauders did), Sirius ate his breakfast in a better mood than usual. He, James, Remus and Peter set off for Hogsmeade along with the other groups of third-years and above, chatting excitedly about what they were going to get. It was out of the question that practical joke stuff from Zonko's was involved, but Peter wanted to sample the new flavour of chocolate in Honeyduke's, Remus said he'd rather like a new set of quills from Scrivenshaft's, and James said he'd like to take a look in Spintwitches despite his new Cleansweep Five sitting, in pristine condition, in his dormitory. 'There's rumours that the Nimbus 1000's been released!' he insisted, as if that clarified why he needed to go there.

Sirius wasn't bothered where they went as long as he got a Butterbeer at the end of the day, and he said as much to the others, to which they agreed enthusiastically. But by the end of the day, when they had all found an empty table at The Three Broomsticks, Sirius's pockets were far more empty than he'd thought; he'd bought a bulging bag of Dungbombs and a small box of Dr. Filibuster's No-Heat, Wet Start Fireworks; stocked up on peppermint creams and honey-filled chocolate; and reluctantly purchased a tin of wood polish for his Shooting Star, something which James had insisted he buy ('For _you_ to look good on your _broom_, your _broom_ has to look good on _you_,' James had told him wisely).

'What will it be, then, boys?' James asked, rubbing his hands together and vacating his seat at their table.

'Butterbeer,' said Sirius instantly. 'With a shot of Firewhisky.'

'You're underage,' Remus reminded him.

'You're such a bore,' Sirius teased. 'Okay, no Firewhisky.'

'Yeah, I'll have a Butterbeer as well, thanks,' Remus said.

'Me too,' Peter agreed.

'Okay, so that's three Butterbeers, one with Firewhisky, and one Butterbeer for me with some ginger - '

'He likes a bit of ginger, doesn't he?' Remus said pleasantly, though there was a double meaning to his words.

The table rang with laughter while James smiled sardonically.

'Ha, ha,' he said without humour. 'Really funny, Moony - '

'Stop acting so bloody offended whenever we bring her up,' Remus said, frowning.

'Oooh, tetchy!' Sirius joked.

'Must be Moony's time of the month, eh?' James retorted, to which Remus glared.

'Too far, Prongs, mate,' Sirius told him; they all knew the full moon was coming up and Remus did indeed get rather touchy when he was near to transforming.

'Yeah, sorry, Remus...' James muttered apologetically.

'It's fine, just get us those Butterbeers,' Remus said, obviously trying not to think about it.

James half-heartedly turned to the bar to get the drinks.

'He does though, doesn't he?' Remus started as soon as James was out of earshot. 'He goes all huffy whenever we happen to talk about Lily, or make fun of him, even though it'd be different if it were the other way around! I wish he'd just take it as a joke.'

It was most uncharacteristic for Remus to be moaning about one of his best friends, but then again, him having the burden of turning into a raging werewolf every month was bound to make him feel irritable now and then.

'Everyone has a soft spot, though, don't they?' Sirius argued weakly. 'And James's happens to be, er, Evans.' He wondered for the hundredth time what his best friend's reaction would be if he found out just what Sirius had done - twice - with his 'soft spot', and then how big of a huff James would actually get into.

'Pretty _big_ soft spot,' Remus muttered, pulling Sirius out from his thoughts.

Praying someone would change the subject, and leaving Remus muttering to himself, Sirius turned to Peter, hoping to strike up a conversation. But at that moment, the door to the The Three Broomsticks opened, bringing a draught in with it, and Sirius looked up to see who had just walked in only to freeze with his words to Peter firmly lodged in his throat.

Lily Evans, in all her shiny copper-haired green-eyed glory, was the one that had brought the draught in, and she was mere feet away from their table and getting closer. Mary MacDonald was following in her wake, of course, but Sirius barely noticed, and as she strode past, carrying with her the scent of something floral and exotic, Sirius could have sworn that her eyebrow raised the tiniest bit as she looked at him. One nano-second later, though, and it was gone, and she had gone past their table and sat at an empty one in the corner.

Sirius cleared his throat, suddenly lost in what he was about to say. 'Erm - so Pe - '

'Drinks, everyone!' James interrupted cheerfully, not noticing that Lily had just entered. 'Let's see - this one's mine - sorry, Padfoot, I couldn't wangle you some Firewhisky - '

'What? Oh, no worries, mate,' Sirius said, finally taking in what James was saying and remembering to grin.

'I did try though,' he winked, taking a sip of his own drink. 'That Madam Rosmerta must be immune to my dazzling charm.'

'Oh, is that what you call it?' Sirius joked.

Sirius glanced at the bar, where the new barmaid Madam Rosmerta was indeed attracting lots of attention with the male customers. She was young, only about nineteen, Sirius guessed, and extremely attractive. He knew that many a seventh-year had tried to win themselves a free drink - or possibly even more - by using several flirting techniques. But whether they'd succeeded, he wasn't sure.

'Hey, James, Lily's here,' Peter piped up, to which Sirius mentally slapped him.

'What? _Here_? As in, The Three Broomsticks?' His head swivelled around like a curious owl until he spotted her, in conversation with Mary over a Butterbeer.

James took that as his cue to get up and talk to her. Sirius saw Remus shake his head dispairingly as he scrambled up from the table and followed his best friend, though he wasn't entirely sure why. To convince him to come back to their table? To join in with the banter that would ensue?

'So, Evans,' James said loudly, dropping into the seat beside Mary, who gave James a disgruntled look and shifted her chair further away from him. 'Didn't expect to see you here. Thought you'd be finishing off homework in the library. Or something equally nerdy.'

Lily and Sirius exchanged a glance for a fraction of a second before Lily fixed James with a glare. 'And I thought _you'd _be parading your many talents to your little fan club - they're hanging around outside Madam Puddifoot's, in case you want to chat with them.' She gave him a false smile. 'Decided to take a break from your exhausting fame, eh, Potter?'

'You think I have _talents_?' repeated James, which was evidently all he had taken from what she had just said. 'And not just one? _Many_? Aw, Evans,' he sighed, pretending to be touched.

'You have qualities,' Lily corrected herself. 'Whether they're considered as actual talents is a matter of opinion.'

'Don't try to hide it, Evans, we all know you think I'm incredibly talented,' said James seriously.

'Why would I need to _hide_ anything?' Lily replied delicately, and her earnest green eyes switched to Sirius standing behind James before flicking back again - Sirius knew she was talking about their conversation a couple of weeks ago, and silently begged her not to give James any hints. 'I've made it perfectly clear what I think of you - '

'You forget, Evans, that you still owe me for cursing Snivellus - '

'_Attempting _to curse him,' Lily reprimanded him.

'- and thereby forcing him to run away from you, and thankfully, us too, because as I said to my dear friend Sirius here, the sight of his very face was putting me off dinner.'

'The sight of his face puts me off, full stop,' Sirius interjected with a grimace.

'Very true, Padfoot, very true. So, in conclusion,' James said professionally, as though he were explaining an important ethical issue, and standing up alongside Sirius, 'you could say that I at least deserve to be treated with _respect_ - '

'You don't bloody well deserve to be treated with respect from _anyone_, Potter!' Lily exploded, standing up.

'Calm down, Evans, I was only joking - ' James said hurriedly, backing down. He looked at Sirius in surprise; Sirius could only shrug with a mirrored expression.

'_Why?_ Why can't you just leave me alone, wherever I go, you have to provoke me, and it's not like I do the same to you, so sod off with Black over there and sit down at your own sodding table!'

'Fine, I will!' James retorted angrily. 'I just came over here to _talk_ - '

'Talk? Or insult me?'

'Evans, I - '

'Just go, will you?'

James, his face twisted in anger, turned away sharply, muttering, 'Come on, Sirius.' Sirius shot Lily a puzzled, yet slightly annoyed look before following an irate James to their table. He was somewhat annoyed at Lily for the way she had just snapped like that, when James was clearly not being too serious - well, he never was serious anyway, but Lily knew that. Why was she suddenly so angry? They usually just slagged each other off a bit, and then either Lily walked away looking haughty or James strutted off looking as proud as a peacock. He wondered whether she was still having troubles with Snape about their friendship, and maybe they'd recently had another argument. He hadn't asked her about it in a while, anyway - they hadn't been alone since their most recent evening conversation.

'Went well, then, I take it?' said Remus lightly, as James reached he and Peter.

'We're going,' James muttered, grabbing his cloak.

'I haven't finished!' Peter protested, indicating his half-drunk Butterbeer.

'We're going!' James repeated loudly, reaching for Sirius's cloak and throwing it to him. Within minutes everyone had reluctantly left their Butterbeers and the four of them were out in the village again.

'James,' started Remus sternly, but James was striding past them and back up towards the castle.

'I'm going to finish off some homework!' he shouted with his back to them, in an unsuccessful attempt at sounding nochalant.

'He's like a little girl,' said Remus, who sounded thoroughly fed up. 'I swear, one of these days...'

'Shall we follow him, or what?' Sirius asked, because neither Remus or Peter had suggested otherwise.

'I think I'm going to go to the hospital wing,' Remus said rather half-heartedly. 'I've got a massive headache, and tonight's when I...you know...'

'Yeah, go on, mate,' Sirius agreed. 'Listen, Moony, you know we'd come with you, don't you? We're nearly there...'

'I know,' Remus smiled, and gave Sirius a playful nudge on the forearm before saying goodbye to Peter and retracing James's steps.

'Sirius, I - '

'Merlin's pants!' Sirius yelled suddenly, remembering what he'd forgotten. 'I've left my Dungbombs in The Three Broomsticks, I need to go back and get them - '

'I have some homework to do anyway,' Peter admitted. 'I'll see you in the common room?'

Sirius nodded and hurried back to the pub, which was now getting full of the usual customers including many more Hogwarts students. He found that his Dungbombs were, thankfully, still on the empty table untouched, so he pocketed them, checked he had everything, and pushed past some more customers at the doorway.

He intended to catch up with Peter, who wasn't far out of the village, but something happened then that stopped him.

Lily had just exited the Post Office alone, and she saw Sirius standing a few feet away staring right back at her.

She turned in the opposite direction, but Sirius, with a glance over his shoulder to see if anyone was looking - namely anyone he knew - hurried over.

'Evans! Where's the delightful Mary MacDonald, then?' Sirius greeted, falling into step beside her.

She was avoiding looking at him. 'I don't know. She said she wanted to go round on her own for a while. I suspect she was embarassed because a certain _somebody_ who showed up in The Three Broomsticks made me cause a little bit of a scene, and - er - she said it was too much drama whenever he was around.'

'Well _I _hardly contributed, so I assume you're implying James there,' Sirius said casually. 'Why did you get so angry at him, anyway?'

Lily turned to look at him then, her expression full of disbelief and annoyance. 'You know, I'm not going to talk to you if you'll only take his side - '

'I didn't say I was on his side,' Sirius reminded her. 'Though I am. All I'm asking is, why did you get upset so easily?'

'Why do you care?' she sniffed, though he got the feeling she was avoiding the question.

'I _am _capable of being sensitive towards the feelings of others, you know,' he informed her.

'I'll find that hard to believe.'

'Evans, why do you have to make this so tiring?'

'Can't you see that I don't _want_ to talk to you?' she said exhaustedly.

'Doesn't mean I'm not going to try,' Sirius retorted with a rougish wink.

Lily rolled her eyes.

'Evans, I just came to ask whether you and Snivellus have been arguing again, and maybe that was why you got angry at James, and that was all I was going to say. Okay?'

She studied him, probably to check whether he was joking. When she'd decided he wasn't, she said, 'Well, I've decided to be friends with him, though only to save the trouble of shouting at him all the time, and Mary thinks I'm being stupid - '

'Which you are,' Sirius said. When she opened her mouth to retort, he said, 'Look, Evans, I don't mean to sound cliche and all that, but once people have turned to the Dark side, you know, they don't come back. I thought you'd be clever enough to realise that. Snivellus is clearly heading that way, so better to ditch him now because you won't have to face the trouble in the long run. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about.'

'What, you know someone who's willing to go over to "the Dark side"?' Lily asked sceptically, air quoting the words.

Sirius imagined Regulus with the Dark Mark branded on his arm, wearing a heavy mask and long dark robes, and, with a shudder, could not imagine any other alternative to Regulus's life. It was stupid, really, because he was just thirteen, and seemed young and immature, but Sirius could not miss the hungry, fascinated look in his brother's eyes when he heard news about Muggle tortures, killings and grotesque work of the Death Eaters that had now become a part of their daily lives.

'I know more than you think, Evans,' Sirius said absent-mindedly.

They walked on in uncomfortable silence for the next few moments, not really sure where they were going and not sure why the other was there.

'I still don't get why Potter acts like he hates me,' Lily grumbled as they passed through the village.

'I _told_ you, Evans,' Sirius said firmly. 'And I'm not repeating myself. You really are more forgetful than Peter is sometimes.'

'I'm _not_ forgetful!' Lily protested.

'Take a joke, Evans, everyone knows you're about the most boring, sensible, goody-two-shoes in the year. Aside from James and I, of course.' He flashed Lily a grin, which she did not return.

'You're always top of the class, yet you barely put any effort in at all,' stated Lily almost enviously.

Sirius just shrugged in the face of his own brilliance. 'You know, you get used to your own exceptional academic abilities after a while. I was careful to make sure I was going to be modest about it and didn't brag - '

He recieved a shove for that, which nearly tipped him off-balance.

'I actually put my intelligence to good use, you know,' Sirius said conversationally. 'Besides doing practical jokes, stealing stuff, and just...being naturally Marauder-ish.'

She eyed him carefully, looking sceptical again.

'I have! James and I, well, Remus and Peter too, but mostly James and I...we've actually made something really brilliant, we're dead proud - '

'What is it?'

'Ah, Marauder's honour, Evans,' Sirius said, tapping his nose. 'If I told you, I'd have to kill you.'

'I'd rather not know, then,' Lily said seriously.

They had reached the very edge of the village, and were standing next to the fence which stopped anyone from going further, and coming across the rotting, tumbledown house known as the Shrieking Shack.

'It's kind of creepy, isn't it?' Lily whispered, shuddering.

'Not really,' he said. He used to be slightly apprehensive about it, but since he'd discovered one of his best friends went down there every month to transform, and would be doing tonight, it didn't bother him any more.

It was then that they suddenly realised where they were, and just how far they'd walked. Lily looked genuinely shocked. 'I - I - I should be getting back,' she stuttered, arranging her cloak so she didn't have to look at him.

'You can take a secret passageway,' Sirius suggested. 'There's one not far away.'

He led her to an uneven stone wall, in front of which a collection of large boulders stood. Sirius pushed back the largest to reveal a small circular tunnel entrance.

Lily's eyes widened in surprise. 'I'm supposed to crawl through there?'

'Look, I know you shouldn't be taking these secret routes into school, you've got a reputation to uphold, Little Miss Perfect and everything, but, you said you wanted to get back and I'm showing you.' He grinned crookedly. 'Ladies first?'

'No, I've just realised the view you'll have of me when you follow me in,' Lily said truthfully, but almost warningly.

'I was looking forward to that,' Sirius replied, raising his eyebrows, and he took her disgusted look as his cue to wedge himself into the tunnel. 'Get that boulder back into place, would you?' he shouted to her as he lit his wand.

He heard Lily enter the tunnel, and the grazing of the boulder on the ground which meant she'd done as he'd asked.

'How did you know about this?' Lily asked curiously from behind him.

'Honestly, Evans, you think I'd tell you a thing like that? You'd only bloody go and tell McGonagall and get this passageway shut off - '

'I would not!' Lily interrupted angrily, her voice echoing in the tunnel, and Sirius laughed quietly to himself at how they were able to find something to fight about even in a dark tunnel.

'I'm starting to regret taking you here,' Sirius sighed. 'Right, okay, we're nearly at the end. You'll be able to stand up in this part of the passageway.'

'Thank God,' Lily muttered.

Sirius shuffled out of the circular tunnel and into a wide, open chamber, which smelled extremely fusty. Lily followed, making noises of distaste. 'Up those stairs,' he instructed her, 'and through the trapdoor, and hey presto! You come out behind a mirror on the fourth-floor corridor.'

'Why do I have to go first?' she asked in outrage.

'Because if Filch sees you, you can pretend it's part of your Prefect duties thing,' he explained sweetly. 'Whereas if Filch sees me, I get detention. Something which I can handle, of course, but can't be bothered to endure right now. Off you pop.'

She shot him a look, and then hurried up the flight of stone steps. Sirius waited while she heaved herself through the trapdoor, and then pulled him up when she had checked that the coast was clear.

'Wait!' she hissed when Sirius made to push a large piece of wall forwards which held a wall-length mirror on the other side. 'I can hear someone...'

Sirius waited, both of them frozen where they stood, when the sound of young, sneering voices reached them.

'Yeah, that first-year's outside, I say we push him into the Whomping Willow,' said a spiteful voice that Sirius could only recognize as his little brother's.

There was a grunt of approval, which must have belonged to Edgar Bullstrode, and one or two 'Yeah, Reg!'s and a 'Let's do it!'.

'Let's do it tonight!' one voice said excitedly. 'We can lure him out, or something...'

'That's what the little sod gets for running into me and knocking my frogspawn everywhere,' said Regulus darkly.

The anger thudding inside him, Sirius threw open the hidden mirror-door with as much force as he could muster and came face-to-face with his own little brother and his four Slytherin friends. They were sure to look menacing, but could not help cowering slightly when he walked over.

'What the _hell _did I just hear?' Sirius snarled in a way that was extremely dog-like. 'Are you planning to push someone into a gigantic vicious _tree_, is that it?'

'He's a stupid little first-year anyway!' piped up one of Regulus's friends who sported a face like a troll. The others mumbled in agreement.

'I don't give a _damn_ what year he's in!' Sirius growled, his hands balling into fists. 'Do you know that the Willow can _kill_ someone, Reg? Would you like to have that on your conscience? Hm? _Answer me, then_!'

'You can't tell me what to do, you know,' Regulus said, infuriatingly casual, as though he wasn't bothered at all by his brother's rage so great that he seemed to be on fire.

'WELL DON'T SAY I DIDN'T BLOODY WARN YOU WHEN YOU GET YOURSELF EXPELLED!' Sirius roared, unable to contain his anger. Blood was pulsing through him; he had never felt so livid. 'I swear, Reg, I s_wear_ you're going to end up in Azkaban and I'm not even going to feel sorry for you when you do...'

'You don't care _what_ happens to me!' Reg argued, though his temper was nothing to his brother's. 'I'm _not_ a little kid! You think you're so cool just because you've got all your friends, and you're not like them at all!' He laughed derisively. 'You're a disgrace, you're not even _worthy_ - '

Sirius yanked out his wand and fired a curse at his brother before he could finish. Right now he was going to hex him into oblivion; he didn't even care, he just knew that he could almost feel fire coursing through his veins and Regulus was the reason why -

The curse Regulus had aimed back at Sirius missed, and it wasn't until Sirius heard a shriek from behind him that he realised how he had come to be here, and who was accompanying him, and he thrust a curse at Regulus with a feeling of hatred, and then he heard somebody shouting.

The two siblings stopped as if hit with a Body-Bind Curse. Regulus flashed a satisfactory smile.

'We'll get him tonight, Black!' he hissed, and he sprinted away down the corridor with his cronies following him.

* * *

><p><em>AN: DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN! I realise all the stuff Sirius says is about the dangers of the Whomping Willow when in time Sirius actually does this himself, but hey, this is some poor innocent little kid. Whereas Sirius does it to Snape, whom he hates. So, I guess, your perception of how cruel an action is depends on the person it's inflicted on. In Sirius's case, anyway. _


	10. Nine: A Hard Day's Night

_A/N: Hmm, I think this is the chapter in which Sirius really starts to feel something for Lily. And there's also some Animagus-y action going on and angst and stuff, yeah! Anyway enjoy. Oh, and I'm way too pleased with the name of this chapter - not only is it named for a song by one of my favourite bands, but the following lyrics include 'working like a dog.' A dog, get it? Sirius is a dog? OK, I'll stop.  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong>Nine<strong>

**A Hard Day's Night  
><strong>

'Excuse me! What is going on over there!'

The unmistakeable voice of Professor McGonagall reached Sirius, and he couldn't register it through his numb brain. He was literally trembling with shock, and his nerves told him to move, but he couldn't.

He remembered the awful shriek and it was that which ripped him away from where he stood, the stone-flagged floor blackened from the scorching curses that had erupted from his and Regulus's wands mere seconds ago.

'Lily,' Sirius mumbled, as he found her lying unconscious beside the mirror, which was still ripped open, and he heard swift footfalls coming ever closer. Shaking, he dragged Lily into the chamber behind the mirror and could barely shut it again, snapping it into place just as he heard McGonagall reach the place where he'd stood.

He waited in agony, every particle in his mind concentrated on being silent and pleading her to go. After a very, very long while, she continued up the corridor, evidently deciding that the source of all the commotion must have been either Peeves or somewhere else around the castle.

Sirius let out a long breath; miraculously, she had not thought to check behind the mirror (or perhaps she did not know there was something beyond it), and if her eyes had come across a shaking Sirius holding an unconscious Lily, he dreaded to think what would happen next.

'Lily, wake up, please, Lily,' Sirius whispered, kneeling on the cold floor and supporting her head with his hand. He pointed his wand at her and, hoping it would work, hoping she hadn't been hit by anything too dangerous, he whispered, '_Enervate.'_

Miraculously, her eyelids began to flutter and her lips formed incoherent words. 'I...what...Sirius...'

'Oh, thank God, Lily, thank God,' he breathed, although it was more to himself than the girl lying slumped but supported in his arms.

She looked at him with her unfocused green eyes, and he was so, _so _thankful that she'd woken up, he almost wanted to laugh at how relieved he was, and surprised to discover it.

'You nearly gave me a heart attack, Evans,' Sirius said breathlessly, as Lily regained consciousness again, sitting up and holding her head.

'My head hurts,' she stated, barely audiably. 'What - I don't remember what happened.'

Sirius looked at her anxiously, and then the comprehension dawned on her freckled face.

'Li - Evans, I - '

'You were fighting,' she stated. 'With your brother.'

Sirius couldn't bear the look she was giving him. He was forced to look away.

'He - he hit me,' she stammered. 'I remember that...I remember that now.'

'Evans?' Sirius pleaded, begging her silently that she'd stop looking so sad, and so shocked.

'_Don't_,' she warned him, her voice cracking. 'Don't even try to talk to me.'

'You don't hate me, do you?' Sirius asked pathetically, but she had gotten up, unstable, and pushed open the wall once more.

'Where are you going?' Sirius demanded, standing up despite his trembling knees.

'Hospital wing,' she said firmly, and Sirius knew that if he followed her, it would already be too late. She didn't even seem angry, and that, Sirius thought, was the worst part.

Sirius slid down the wall with his knees pressed up against his chest. He'd been stupid, he'd let Regulus get to him. He'd let Lily get hurt. What if it wasn't just a Stunning Spell that had hit her? What if it was a curse, a much more powerful one? The thought made his head spin.

He cast his mind back to what he'd said. He was just _so _angry, and he didn't even know why. It was scary to think he'd gotten out of control like that. He was somehow reminded of Remus and how it must feel to be ripped apart into a huge, terrifying, blood-curdling monster, _truly_ out of control, with no boundaries and no judgement of right and wrong.

Remus. The Whomping Willow. He was going down there tonight, he was going to transform tonight. And Regulus was going to the Whomping Willow tonight, too. To scare some hopeless little first-year. _Tonight_.

The realisation made him feel sick. Sirius grabbed his wrist and looked at his watch. It took a few moments for him to make out the time, but it was 3:30 pm. He still had a few hours. And he was so massively grateful, because he had to push Lily out of his mind for the time being, he needed to stop Regulus going to the Whomping Willow. Whatever it took.

**OoO**

'Listen!' Sirius shouted fifteen minutes later, when he had gathered the strength to make it up three flights of stairs and into the common room. James, Remus and Peter were sitting by the fire, and looked up in surprise when Sirius scrambled over and uttered his outburst.

'We're listening,' Remus stated, puzzled.

'Sirius?' James asked worriedly, who had noticed how pale Sirius was, and how desperate he looked.

'Dormitory,' Sirius gasped. 'Is it empty?'

'I think so,' Remus replied. 'It was when I got my books anyway - '

'Doesn't matter, just come on!' Sirius urged, and the four of them followed him upstairs and into their dormitory, which was, as Remus had predicted, empty.

'Are you going to tell us what all this is about?' James asked, looking seriously concerned. His omnipresent grin had vanished from his face and his hazel eyes were wide.

'Remus,' Sirius began, forcing his words out, 'My little brother - Reg - he's going to go down to the...to the Willow. Tonight. He's taking some little kid with him...he says he wants to push him in - '

'What?' James asked incredulously. 'That's sick!'

'How do you know?' Peter asked fearfully.

'I - I met Reg on my way back up to the castle,' Sirius said; there was some truth in it, after all. 'We sort of...had a fight. Well, I was really angry, and - '

'Why is he even doing it?'

'This kid knocked into him, I think - '

'_Just_ because of that? What the hell!' James said angrily.

'It's tonight, Remus!' Sirius pleaded.

Remus's puzzled look was long gone, and he was now looking stony-faced, and in some sort of shock. Then he looked surprisingly angry.

'What is he _thinking_,' Remus said darkly, 'to go to the Whomping Willow at night...and if that's not bad enough, he wants to try to _push_ someone in - '

'I tried to tell him - '

'He doesn't know that Remus is a werewolf,' James pointed out hurriedly.

'_So_?' Remus glared.

'So he wasn't doing it because of _that _reason, if that's what you're thinking!' James snapped. Sirius had a feeling he was trying to comfort Remus because he was probably blaming himself, but it wasn't really working.

'It's still a bloody _fatal tree_, though, isn't it?' Remus said viciously.

'You know what we've got to do, Prongs, don't you?' Sirius said, looking at James with a sort of fierce seriousness.

'That I do, Padfoot,' James replied, his lips twitching though there wasn't really anything at all funny about the situation.

'I don't understand,' Peter said slowly.

'We've got to transform, you idiot!' Sirius shouted with more force than necessary; he cleared his throat. 'We've got to finish it, become proper Animagi, by _tonight_!'

'Tonight?' Peter squeaked.

'Unless you want Regulus running from me screaming or two seriously injured, if not dead, students lying on the school grounds, then yes, Peter, tonight,' Remus said grimly.

'We need some sort of plan,' said James firmly. 'Remus, what time are you going down to the Willow?'

'About seven?' Remus guessed.

'Okay, so Sirius, Peter and I will wait with the Cloak until you've gone down to, you know, transform, and then we'll follow you and wait near the Willow for Reg and whoever else might turn up.'

'And then what do we do, give them directions to the entrance?' hissed Sirius with more sarcasm than he had intended.

James glared at him, his eyes flashing, before continuing. 'We'll have to just fight them off - you know, get them away from the Willow. Distract them.'

'What will they do when they hear a sodding great howling sound and then realise it's the full moon?' Remus asked flatly.

'They're not going to figure it out, Remus,' James said fiercely. 'We'll make sure of that.'

**OoO**

It was ten minutes to seven. Sirius, James and Peter were sat in a moonlit abandoned classroom, exhausted. They'd skipped dinner, and both Sirius and James had regretfully skipped Quidditch practice, to practice their transformations, and after hours and hours of repeatedly forcing themselves to take the shape of a rat, shaggy black dog and (they'd had to move several desks to make room for it) proud stag, they were finally triumphant. They'd managed it. If it wasn't for the waves of nausea washing over Sirius at what they were about to do, he'd be extremely proud of himself.

'Remus is nearly there,' James said, peering out of the window; they'd chosen a classroom which faced the school grounds and the Whomping Willow itself. 'I can see him...'

For what felt like the thousandth time, Sirius underwent the painless but slightly uncomfortable process of turning into his Animagi. He felt himself crouch on all fours, develop a snout and more prominent ears, and made sense of the strong limbs that were now underneath him. It was strange, but he liked it. He felt more powerful, and less nervous. He sniffed, unabling to get used to the fact that his nose was now a million times more sensitive, and wagged his tail.

'Stop doing that, Padfoot, it's not time yet!' James told him, sounding bizarrely like a teacher, and Sirius reluctantly regained human form again.

'Right, he's gone...Madam Pomfrey's going back up to the castle now...'

Peter was trembling from head to toe. 'What if I can't do it?' he fretted.

'It's going to be fine,' James reassured him. 'It's not like you'd be much help in keeping some kids away from a dirty great tree, anyway.'

Sirius snorted. 'Yeah, rat powers are rather limited,' he added.

'Just leave it to us, Wormy, and bite them on the ankle if they get near you,' James advised him. 'Oh, Madam Pomfrey's near the front doors...right, let's go.'

He grabbed his father's silvery Invisibility Cloak from the desk, and threw it over them all. 'Be quiet, okay?' he whispered.

'What did you _think _we were going to do, start playing the French horn?' Sirius hissed back. He was feeling rather more touchy in the panic of the situation.

'Padfoot, now really isn't the time - '

'Sssh, both of you!' Peter pleaded, and they all fell silent and opened the classroom door slowly. Checking for anyone - ghosts included - before proceeding, they made their way across draughty corridors and eventually reached the small broom cupboard beside the oak front doors. Luckily, the classroom they'd picked wasn't far at all from the castle entrance.

James pressed his ear up against the doors and then gave them the thumbs-up. All three Marauders scrambled into the broom cupboard, hardly daring to breathe as Madam Pomfrey opened the front doors with a loud clunk and swept past them. Sirius felt James nudge Peter; it was, after all, very cramped in the cupboard.

James opened the door the tiniest amount, and Peter instantly shrunk and squirmed most uncomfortably to become a rat. 'Hurry!' Sirius hissed, as Peter scuttled through the gap in the broom cupboard door and lodged himself between the two oak front doors, making a small crack for them.

Stowing the Cloak away before peering around the door to make sure the coast was clear, James and Sirius closed the broom cupboard shut as quietly as they could, and then pushed open one of the doors onto the cool, starry night.

Peter squeaked and meandered his way across the grounds before them, leading the way. Sirius couldn't deny the thrill of excitement that stole through him despite their situation.

'Ready?' James whispered. Sirius nodded firmly. A few seconds later, he had turned into a large, shaggy black dog, which looked a lot more menacing in the moonlight. Beside him was a graceful yet equally menacing stag, with impressive antlers and a gleam in its eyes. He knew it was James, but Sirius suddenly experienced a shudder of fright - he'd never been scared of James before, human or otherwise.

Sirius bounded in the direction of the wild willow tree, vicious and snakelike with dangerous gnarled branches. One of the advantages of being a dog was that he was so fast - he'd ran the distance from the castle entrance to the tree in just a few seconds flat. James galloped along beside him, pounding the ground nervously with his hooves once he had stopped, close to the Willow but out of reach of its ruthless branches.

They took to circling the tree, alert and watchful, with Peter squeaking feebly every so often to remind them of his prescence. He wasn't sure how long it had been, but he was determinedly trotting around in a circle with a fierce motivation to keep going, keep listening, keep looking out for anything...

The night wore on infuriatingly slowly, and howls of pain and longing could be heard faintly, punctuated by the snaps and harsh whipping sound of the willow tree's branches as they lurched in all directions. Sirius's eyelids began to droop, and he was so tempted to simply curl up on the ground, but inside he knew he must keep going, and the thought struck him repeatedly that Regulus was somehow going to come bounding out of the castle, and he knew he couldn't let him get anywhere near the tree. Every hoot, rustle and croak that escaped the night was only a reminder that things were out there, watching him, and he had to be constantly on guard.

After what seemed like several hours, Sirius's acute dog senses finally noticed that there were voices and harsh footfalls coming from the castle. He trotted over nearer to the front doors to get a better view.

Two people were carrying a smaller person between them, grabbing the back of their robes. One person was large and seemed to emit a series of grunt; this must be Edgar Bullstrode. The other, judging by the sharp features, dark eyes and curly hair, must be Regulus, his brother, Sirius in miniature. The smallest person was a rather scrawny-looking boy, and he was whimpering in fear.

'See that tree over there? Looks nice, doesn't it?'

Grunt. Grunt.

'Please...It was just _frogspawn_...'

'Would you like to take a look at that tree?' Regulus continued in a patronizing whisper.

Sirius hid behind the wall, craning his head around and breathing through his nose. He just had to wait until they were closer...

'P - Please - I - '

'You know it _looks_ scary, but I expect it'll be alright once you get there,' Regulus continued nochanlantly. 'Especially when one of the branches picks you up and wallops you around.'

Grunt.

'I - I don't - '

The footfalls stopped. Sirius drew his head back for fear of being seen. He could see their shadows on the ground, but could not see them.

'Hey - I didn't know we had stags in the school grounds...'

Sirius leapt out from behind the wall and gave the loudest, most menacing growl he could manage, barking for added effect. Edgar Bullstrode looked terrified, his many chins wobbling, and the first-year seemed to be paralyzed with fear, but Regulus seemed the least surprised.

Sirius barked again, and went for Bullstrode, but he stumbled backwards, let go of the small boy and ran back to the castle as fast as he could, grunting all the while. Regulus still had tight hold of the first-year, but Sirius noticed his hands were shaking, and he bounded forwards and knocked Regulus right to the floor. The first-year, who was now free of Regulus' clutches, finally unfroze and ran off too.

'Let _go_!' Regulus demanded, but Sirius just kept him pinned to the cold dewy grass. Regulus stared Sirius straight in the face, and Sirius waited until he was sure the first-year was safe in the castle before finally realeasing him.

It was a while before Regulus picked himself up and swept the dirt from his robes. He looked at Sirius for a long time, with his head at an angle like someone might do if they were studying a rare piece of artwork. Sirius started to feel slightly uncomfortable but did not let his gaze drop from his brother's moonlit face.

'You can't stop me,' he whispered.

For one moment Sirius forgot he was a dog, and opened his mouth to reply, but all that came out was a loud bark. Regulus did not flinch, a glint in his grey eyes, and he marched back to the castle without looking back.

He knew what Regulus had realized; he wasn't stupid. He should have been worried, but he wasn't; right now he didn't really care about anything, and felt the ache in his limbs from walking around for so long. He turned back and made his way over to James, who was standing a few feet away from the tree, watching Sirius as he met with him.

They could not communicate, but the stag bowed his beautiful head, and Sirius understood. A squeak and rustle in the grass meant that Peter was there too. It was time to go back to the castle now. Sirius realized then that Remus had stopped howling, and then realised how very tired he was, and actually had to steady himself for he had nearly dropped to the ground. James trotted towards the castle, much more slowly than he had done when they had first arrived. Maybe he was tired too. Sirius hadn't considered the after-effects of staying in animal form for too long.

Instead of entering the castle through the front doors, they ambled across a high stone wall until they came to a small wooden door near the greenhouses which, judging by the long thick grass growing free around it, was barely used. In fact, Sirius thought as he turned back into his usual self, the Marauders were probably the only ones to use it.

He felt extremely dizzy, and exhausted, and James and Peter slid in and out of focus.

'Nice one, Padfoot,' James grinned, and Sirius could only nod in reply. James heaved open the door, which took effort due to the rusty hinges, and they all collapsed into a dank chamber which they knew was next to the Potions storeroom.

'We have to go back and collect the Cloak,' James was saying, but it was barely audible, as Sirius suddenly felt his head connect with the door, and then the door slide above him as he hit the stone-flagged floor and fainted.


	11. Ten: Change, And Not The Financial Kind

_A/N: It feels awkward being back on here again because of how long I've been away! To all the people who might have been waiting for me to update (of which there are probably none), I am sincerely sorry. It's been hectic with exams and everything, and I guess I just haven't found the time to update. So, thank you to all the reviewers of this story so far, and here is the next chapter of The Dog & The Doe. nightshoes x _

* * *

><p><strong>Ten<strong>_  
><em>

**Change - And Not The Financial Kind  
><strong>

Sirius was warm, and comfortable. There was strange acid smell around him, though. It was vaguely familiar, and it brought back the memory of second-year when he'd fallen off one of the moving staircases as they were in the process of moving. It was a stupid thing to do, really, and it had all been to see who out of he and James could jump the furthest off the staircase. Luckily, he'd been on the first-floor, so he'd just sprained his wrist...

Sirius opened his eyes. He was staring at a high, stony ceiling, and warm sunlight was flooding through what must be a window behind him. Ah. The acid smell. He must be in the hospital wing.

Trying to recall his distorted memory, he looked around. None other than Lily Evans was lying two beds away, her face partially hidden by a cloud of pale lilac-tinted flowers standing in a glass jar by her bedside.

'Lilies.' Sirius grimaced. 'Bit cheesy, don't you think, Evans? Given your name and all that.'

She did not reply. She turned away from him to lie on her back, determinedly staring at the ceiling. Sirius remembered what had happened, and a horrible guilt flooded through him, but he pushed the memory away.

'Why are you still in here, anyway?'

She looked at him, stony-faced. Eventually she decided to reply, though it was rather harshly. Then again, he couldn't blame her.

'Well I realised after I got here that I didn't just feel faint, I got a broken ankle too.'

'Oh.' Well, now he felt worse. It must have been when she hit the ground after being Stunned.

'Why are _you_ here? Another stupid practical joke?' she asked dryly.

'I couldn't tell you that, Evans.'

'No, I thought as much.'

There was a silence in which Sirius pummelled his pillows in an attempt to aid his pounding head.

'I can't work out who they're from.'

Sirius, who had not been expecting Lily to say anything else, turned to her. She was still staring at the ceiling, but even though Sirius could only see her profile, he could see she was frowning.

'Er - what?'

'The lilies,' she sighed, more to herself than Sirius. 'I don't know who they're from.'

'Well James had no idea you were in here,' Sirius said thoughtfully, 'so it can't have been him. He's not the type to send flowers to a girl, anyway.'

'As if I'd want flowers from him,' Lily muttered. 'And it's not Mary, because she'd have just told me.'

'Did you ask Pomfrey?'

'_Yes_,' Lily said irritably, 'and she said she hasn't seen anyone, and no-one's come to visit me while I was asleep - '

'Real Billy No-Mates, aren't you?' Sirius laughed.

She shot him a warning glare. 'Not that you'd want to visit someone while they were _asleep_, anyway - '

'Oh I don't know, I'm told _I_ had a fair few girls visiting me just to watch me sleeping when I sprained my wrist in second year - '

'- and I just can't think who else it might be.' She pinched two fingers at the bridge of her nose in thought.

'I could find out for you if you like.' Sirius waggled his eyebrows at her.

'How?' she said, now suspicious.

'I can't tell you _that_, Evans my dear, but do you want me to or not?'

'You wouldn't bother to do it anyway.'

Sirius tutted. 'Well if I wasn't going to do it before, I certainly won't do it now.'

Lily shook her head. 'I'll figure it out on my own anyway.'

Madam Pomfrey scurried over, carrying a tray. 'Ah, good morning, Mr. Black! Recovered, I see?'

'Yeah - what happened?'

'Your friends brought you here in the early hours saying that you'd fainted in front of the fireplace in your common room!' Madam Pomfrey said, almost scalding him. 'Being up all night is no good for your academic education, Mr. Black, and I can bet you weren't sat there doing homework - '

Sirius heard a delicate snort from Lily's bed.

'Er, I don't really remember what I was doing actually, but when can I go?'

'After breakfast,' she told him firmly, placing the tray laden with pumpkin juice and muesli in front of him. She fixed his bedcovers and then bustled over to Lily's bed. 'Now, Miss Evans, we'll just do some more ankle exercises...'

Sirius ate his breakfast rather impatiently, then dressed and left, guessing that his friends would probably be in the common room. He wondered if he _should_ find out who was sending Lily flowers. He certainly felt he owed her a favour, since he was the one who landed her a broken ankle, but he didn't really want to show her that he cared about her all of a sudden, and plus it would be another thing to feel guilty about as he would have to keep it from James.

James was sitting in the common room, predictably not alone but with some rather unexpected companions. Peter was nowhere to be seen and Sirius assumed that Remus was still in the Shrieking Shack, to be collected by Madam Pomfrey sometime soon.

'So, it's all about being observant, to be honest,' James was saying to the group of gossipy girls that were sat by him, 'and, you know, you've got to have a sort of Poker-face thing going on, you can't let the other Seeker know you've seen the Snitch...got to be subtle...'

The girls giggled madly while Sirius gave a loud snort. James was about the least subtle person in the world. James suddenly looked over his shoulder and saw Sirius standing behind him, smiling instantly.

'Sirius! Alright, mate! See Pomfrey let you go then...you know, I nearly fainted myself when I saw you on the floor like that. Did you like our cover story? I thought of that myself - '

'Hey Sirius!' One of the girls grinned at him widely, someone who Sirius knew as Ramona Brown, a popular yet mildly annoying girl in his year.

'Hi, Brown.' Sirius winked at her, and the other girls spluttered and gasped as though this was something very offensive. Sirius refrained from rolling his eyes. _Girls._

'You're on the team too, aren't you?' Ramona questioned sweetly. 'You're Beater.'

'Indeed I am.'

'Linda told me. She says you're really good,' Ramona said hopefully.

'I'm not.'

'Modest, Sirius, that's not like you - ' James cut in, highly amused.

'I'm not 'really good', I'm excellent,' Sirius finished, shrugging. The girls collapsed into fits of giggles again. James even joined in.

'Where's Wormy?'

'Still in bed. I thought it best to leave him there, and keep Peasegood entertained,' James said, smirking.

'Let's just go and find Abbott and explain why we missed Quidditch practice yesterday before he hunts us down and slaughters us,' Sirius said flatly, and pulled James from out of his chair.

'You missed practice? Why?' asked one girl from the giggly group, sounding eager for gossip.

'The story will come another time, ladies!' James shouted grandly as they reached the portrait hole. 'Until then, farewell!'

They found Abbott still breakfasting with his sixth-year friends. Thankfully, he had his back to them when they entered the Hall.

'What are we going to say? We can't tell him the _real_ reason,' Sirius whispered.

'I'll make something up,' James muttered confidently.

They reached him and his companions, who looked at James expectantly. Abbott noticed this, and turned around to find James and Sirius standing there awkwardly. He frowned at them disapprovingly.

'And where were _you two _yesterday?' he demanded forcefully. 'Our first real practice and you don't show up - made me look stupid - '

'We're really sorry, Ernie,' James said calmly. 'Our friend's really ill, and we were taking care of him last night.'

Sirius mentally applauded James for that. It was partly true, and he doubted whether he could come up with a more plausible reason himself.

Abbott eyed them both warningly. 'Right,' he said sharply. 'And is he, er, alright now?'

'He's fine,' Sirius assured him. 'Right as rain!'

'If you two ever miss another Quidditch practice again, so help me I will kick you off the team - '

'You can't do that, we're your best recruits!' James said, aghast.

'It won't happen again, Ernie,' Sirius said, nodding respectfully, and stamping on James's toe to make him shut up.

'Make sure it doesn't,' Abbott growled, and sat down to resume eating his eggs.

'Made it out alive, eh?' Sirius said in relief, as they crossed the Entrance Hall back up to the common room.

'Knew we would,' James winked.

'Hey - Prongs,' Sirius said, suddenly deciding on impulse, 'I need to borrow the - '

'Potter! Black!'

The two Marauders looked ahead at the marble staircase to see Professor McGonagall striding down to meet them. She did not look angry, but her eyes, hidden behind small spectacles, were stern.

'Professor?'

'I have been told to inform you that your friend Mr. Lupin has been - er - retrieved, and is now in the hospital wing should you wish to see him.' She said this rather quietly, though there was no-one around.

'Thanks, Professor,' Sirius said, and she gave them a nod and walked swiftly past them.

'What d'you reckon?' James asked once she was out of earshot. 'Shall we go and see him now, or...?'

It was the thought of Remus lying in the bed, recovering from his tiresome monthly endurance, that made Sirius remember something.

'Bloody hell! I've just remembered I've got to take Moony's books back! They were due in yesterday and he didn't manage it because...you know.'

James looked at him strangely, but then Sirius thought he must have imagined it, because he suddenly looked cheery as usual.

'Do you want to meet me in the hospital wing afterwards, then?' James suggested.

'Er...' Sirius hesitated. He didn't really want to go back to the hospital wing; Lily was there, for one, and aside from the fact he got the feeling she disliked him even more now he was the reason she'd got a broken ankle, he knew James would positively get in a frenzy at the sight of her lying weak in a hospital bed, even though the visit would probably end in an argument between the two of them, and that never left James in a good mood.

Thinking quickly, because James was now looking rather puzzled, Sirius thought up an alternative for their morning plans. 'You know, I think Remus is probably tired, and he might be eating breakfast soon, so why don't you just go up to the common room?'

Regarding Sirius with a slightly suspicious look, but then hitching an easy smile back on his face, James said, 'Er, okay. On second thought, have you finished that Defense homework about those creatures of the deep?'

Sirius raised his eyebrows at James's question, but said, 'I haven't even started it, mate.'

'I know, not like me to be doing homework,' James said, a smile inching across his face. 'But I haven't done it either, and you know what Souriant's like, so we could just do it together.'

Souriant, despite his delightful and humble nature, had proved to be an effective teacher who knew more about the Dark Arts than they'd first thought. He was forever piling homework upon them, though, and failure to hand it in meant detention (as they had learned from a very red-faced Arnie a few lessons back). Much as Sirius put off the idea of homework for as long as possible, he didn't fancy writing a giant essay on dangerous sea creatures at the last minute when he could have done it in his free time. So, he agreed to start the essay, though rather reluctantly, and headed up to the common room with James to collect Remus' books.

Sirius found them carefully hidden underneath his bedside table. He saw that Remus had stuck a note to the book at the top of the small pile: _Thanks Padfoot. Come and see me to let me know how it went with your brother. I don't expect Pomfrey will provide much entertainment._ Smiling to himself at Remus' ability to still provide humour to the situation, he stowed the books away in his bag and met James in the common room, who was getting out his textbook and rolling out some parchment, although he was wearing an expression appropriate to preparing to run a marathon.

'See you in a bit, Prongs!' James shouted as he dashed out of the portrait hole and down the stairs to the library. He expected it to be at least half-full, with students milling around chatting in the midst of morning reading. Instead, he found it near-empty, and, forgetting about the note on top of _Moon Man: My Struggle With A Curse, _took the books out of his bag to place on the 'Returned Items' pile. In his haste, however, he promptly ran into someone turning the corner, causing him to drop the books with a startling thud.

Madam Pince, the librarian, obviously alarmed by the sound of her precious books hitting the floor, peeked her vulture-like face around a bookcase and gave Sirius a very patronizing look. He didn't notice this, however, because he was too busy looking at the person whom he had just bashed into.

'Well, well, dear brother. Surprised to see you here.'

'Shut up, Reg.'

'You seem to have dropped your books - let me get them - '

'_No_ - Reg!'

Regulus bent down to grab the books still scattered on the floor with a triumphant expression on his sneering face. Sirius attempted to seize them first, but Regulus was too quick.

Sirius watched Regulus looking at the titles of the books with a growing feeling of panic and despair in his stomach, made even more so by the note still so obviously stuck to one of the books. He prayed that Regulus would simply make nothing of it, but he knew his brother well enough to know how expertly he strung two and two together. Sirius watched the comprehesion dawn on his brother's face as he flipped through the pages of _An Extensive Study of Werewolves and Other Assosciated Part-Human Monsters_. After what seemed like an hour, he shoved the books at Sirius's chest with a smile on his pale face, although it looked more like a leer.

'Just the sort of thing you'd be involved in, Sirius,' he sighed, almost disappointedly, dawdling past him on his way out. 'Always knew there was something weird about that Lupin...you'll regret protecting him one day when he attacks you...'

'You don't know what the hell you're talking about!' snarled Sirius, swivelling around to catch Regulus with his hand on the door handle. He realized when he'd said it that, besides the fact that Regulus was accusing Remus of something he'd never do with intention, he could also trick Regulus into thinking that he'd gotten completely the wrong idea (although his idea was completely accurate).

'Then why were you waiting to attack me last night?' Regulus hissed back. 'And why did I see your werewolf friend going down to the tree before that?'

A nervous feeling in Sirius's stomach had risen when Regulus had said the dreaded word 'werewolf'. It made the whole thing seem very real, and very serious. The thought of what Remus would say if word gotten out, and what would happen, was more than he could bear.

'You just _can't_ tell anyone,' Sirius pleaded, feeling rather pathetic, and also proving that his brother's assumption was correct. 'Okay? I swear to you, I will put you in the hospital wing for a month, I'll kidnap Leonardo - '

But Regulus had already vanished behind the door.

Cursing unheard insults to his brother, Sirius ripped the note from the book it was stuck to, and incinerated it with a flick of his wand. He felt angry with himself for letting his brother discover his friend's darkest secret, and extremely worried that Regulus wouldn't keep it to himself, as telling everyone sounded just like the sort of thing he might do. Sirius couldn't bring himself to tell his friends about what had just happened, but he supposed it was for good reason; better for Remus to hear it from him than anyone else, and maybe with his friends in the know, they could all do something to ensure Regulus wouldn't tell anyone.

Plus, there was the fact that Regulus knew it had been Sirius who bounded upon him and scared off his friend and his victim. By the sounds of it, he hadn't realised James and Peter had been there too, but it brought a flutter of panic to Sirius's stomach to think that Regulus might spread word about there being an illegal Animagus in the school, and maybe even more if Regulus got clever enough.

Telling himself that he would have to force his brother to keep quiet, and considering blackmail as an option, Sirius dropped the books in the basket, which had been enchanted so that it shrieked the names of the items whenever someone returned them. Unfortunately, this wasn't good for Sirius, who cringed as the basket shrieked the names of the werewolf books aloud to the quietly chattering library.

'_Moon Man: My Struggle With A Curse! An Extensive Study of Werewolves and Other _- !'

'Shut up!' Sirius growled, smothering the basket with his hands, to which Madam Pince walked hurriedly over with her beady little eyes aglare.

'Mr. Black! Kindly take your hands off the returned items basket!' she shouted shrilly over the muffled sounds of the basket. 'And leave the library if you are going to make such a scene! First you drop my books, now you attempt to damage school property - '

'Well it's hardly valuable, is it? Just a bloody basket - '

'OUT!'

Sirius left the libary with the strong feeling that a lot of its occupants', including Madam Pince's, eyes were boring into him as though he had committed a heinous crime. He slammed the door, feeling extremely agitated, and remembered that he was supposed to be going up to the common room, so he took the stairs three at a time and prepared to start the dreaded essay.

James was riffling through his Defence textbook when Sirius arrived, his brow furrowing in concentration.

'Sirius, come on, I haven't even done my introduction - '

'There's something I need to tell you,' Sirius said, interrupting James because he had made his mind up on the spot to get the worst over with. He explained all about his meeting with Regulus and that he knew about Remus, and Sirius being an Animagus, but he hadn't guessed that James and Peter were Animagi too. James regarded Sirius with a look of utmost surprise, which slowly and horribly turned to anger.

'What the hell, Sirius? Now your brother knows we'll never see the end of it - why did you let him find out like that - '

'I didn't _let_ him find out!' Sirius replied hotly. 'He figured it out on his own - it was Moony's fault for taking those stupid books out - '

'Don't you dare blame Remus!' James shouted, to which several people in the common room turned around in interest to see who was causing the noise. In spite of his rising temper, Sirius was careful not to spill any more of their secrets, as he thought he'd done enough of that already, and prayed James not to blurt anything out too.

'None of this is anything to do with Remus, it's all to do with you!' James continued. 'And to top it off, he knows about you as well, and he's probably going to figure out the rest of it -'

'He won't!' Sirius said, but it was more of a prayer than a promise. 'Of course he won't - we'll just have to find some way to make sure he keeps quiet - '

'That sounds easy, doesn't it?' James hissed with horrible sarcasm. 'Hmm, we'll just add that to our list of worries - thanks, mate. Well done.' And he packed his bag roughly and stormed out.

Sirius was left to stare after him, in utter disbelief, astonished at the fact he'd just had an argument with James, which never happened. Half of him wanted to run after him, but the other half wanted to be stubborn and stay put. Besides, he had a feeling where James was going, and he didn't want to be present when James broke the news to Remus, as he would feel more guilty than ever. Most unwillingly, Sirius occupied James's seat and got out his books, quill, ink and parchment to start the essay that he was supposed to be working on with James. People in the common room had lapsed back into their friendly chatter, but nonetheless, Sirius had a feeling that everyone seemed to be watching him.


	12. Eleven: Flower Power

_A/N__: Oho! The dream team, the golden duo, the double act...is no more. Not for long, though, I promise. The story isn't about a broken-down Sirius/James relationship. In spite of the terribly cheesy chapter title I think this chapter has a very deep meaning: the chapter in which Sirius struggles with independence and solitariness. Oh, and also there's a bit about Snape. _**  
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_I'd like to thank IWLTxo, jayley, Aislinn Brown, and Z11Recon for the feedback also - I appreciate it!  
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><p><strong>Eleven<strong>

**Flower Power  
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By next morning, things weren't any better. James was completely ignoring Sirius, and so was Remus, as Peter had reluctantly told Sirius that James had explained everything to Remus and he was equally angry. Peter initally seemed unsure whose side to take, but as James was so fiercely determined not to speak to Sirius at all, and looked ready to kill anyone who sided with him, Peter was scurrying around following James and Sirius with a terrified look on his face, shooting Sirius a sorrowful look when the three of them were sat at the Gryffindor table in a compact little group, leaving Sirius to sit on his own.

Besides all his other emotions towards James, Sirius felt relief above all others, as no-one seemed to know anything about what had happened, and no-one was asking any of the Marauders why they had so suddenly split into three against one. Sirius caught Regulus looking at him a few times over at the Slytherin table, but instead of looking spiteful or taunting him, he mostly just looked indifferent. Sirius didn't respond to this anyway; his anger from yesterday at the fact his little brother had worked out their secret had not left him yet.

'I've got a troublesome little concoction for you today, everyone!' Slughorn shouted, rubbing his hands together with enthusiasm. They were in Potions, their third class of the day with the Ravenclaws, and James, Remus and Peter were all stood at one desk determinedly avoiding Sirius's eye. 'It's not really supposed to be attempted for students in this year, but as I have such a talented little group I thought I might try it out with you. The potion you will be making for me today is called the Draught of Living Death. It is fairly difficult but if you follow the instructions exactly, you should find that it becomes easier. I think we'll have a few people here producing impressive results!' His eyes swept the room for his beloved student to indicate whom he was talking of, but soon afterwards his bushy eyebrows raised in surprise. 'But where is Miss Evans?' he asked concernedly.

'She's in the hospital wing, Professor,' Mary shouted from somewhere over in the corner. Sirius's head snapped round to see if she was giving him a knowing look, but she didn't - maybe Lily hadn't told Mary the real reason she was lying in bed with a broken ankle.

'Dear, dear. Well, send her my best wishes,' Slughorn said kindly, as he moved around the room checking that students' cauldrons were lit properly. Sirius kindled his fire with more force than necessary, absent-mindedly checking the ingredients list for the potion he was making. His thoughts trailed off to Lily as he cut up his Sopophorous Bean savagely, almost slicing his finger in the process. He couldn't deny that the sickly feeling of guilt inside him wasn't just because of his recent betrayal of trust to his friends. It was the fact that Lily was lying there, in bed, unable to be present in this Potions class, and it was all because of him. He cursed himself again for his stupidity. He'd completely lost control in his hatred for his brother, not thinking that Lily could have gotten hurt.

As Sirius stirred his potion fifteen minutes later, noting with surprise that it smelled strongly of mint mouthwash, his eyes found James, who was reading through the recipe rather carelessly. He was so desperate for James to be friends with him, but on the other hand, he was annoyed that James was taking this so seriously. Sirius knew that the matter was indeed very serious, so in a way he could not blame him, but he couldn't help thinking that if it had been James who had dropped the books and let someone else realise that Remus was actually a werewolf, he would have expected to be forgiven long before now. And Sirius told himself that he wouldn't have commanded Remus and Peter to take his side like James had done, although in truth he really wasn't sure.

'Ah, Mr. Black!' Slughorn shouted happily, bringing Sirius out of his reverie. 'Let's see, now...'

Sirius stirred his Draught of Living Death self-consciously. He performed well in pretty much all of his subjects, but Potions was usually seen as an hour in which to mess around with James and occasionally drop a dried caterpillar into somebody else's potion without them knowing to see what the results would be. In this lesson, however, with Sirius working alone, he had pretty much followed the recipe.

'Very good!' said Slughorn, impressed. 'You haven't stirred it quite enough times, of course, which is common for beginners, and I suspect a pinch more of the powdered ginger would have improved it a little, but this is a perfectly decent potion.' He gave Sirius a nod which made his chins wobble slightly. 'Ten points to Gryffindor.'

Sirius swelled a little, as it had been the first real effort he'd made in Potions, and then looked at James for a nano-second to see that he was glaring at him with his round glasses shining from the light of the fires in the classroom.

Trying not to look too proud of himself, Sirius ladled his potion into a flask and stoppered it with a flourish. He couldn't help thinking, however, that he wouldn't feel so proud if Lily was there, as she positively outshone everyone else with her abilities. He remembered his conversation about trying to find out who had sent her the liles, and ignoring the feeling of betrayal that came with it (he wasn't about to feel bad for James in a hurry), Sirius decided he would find out for her, whether she wanted him to or not. Now he was dwelling upon it, the curiosity was getting to him, too.

**OoO**

Sirius had first thought it would be easy to carry out the task he had set himself, as his friends were avoiding him so it would be easy to do it in secret. However, he was mistaken; Arnold seemed to constantly be in the dormitory, and whenever he wasn't, Sirius had a load of homework to get through which shortened his free time considerably. Three days had passed, and Lily was still in the hospital wing, though Sirius hadn't visited her, and he was starting to forget about it anyway. But that Wednesday evening, when Remus and Peter were at dinner, Arnold was in the common room and James was still in the changing rooms bragging to the rest of the Quidditch team after practice (he now stayed in the changing rooms in order to avoid walking back up to the castle with Sirius), he decided to take the oppurtunity, and hurried upstairs with a slight feeling of nervousness building inside of him.

He rummaged in James's trunk with trembling hands, praying that Arnold wouldn't come upstairs and find him, and drew out, with relief, the Marauder's Map. Completed at the end of their fourth year, it was a map which, when it wasn't disguised as a peice of blank parchment, showed the entirity of Hogwarts (or the places where the Marauders had been, anyway) and the people within it, represented by small, labelled dots. He could see himself in the Gryffindor dormitory, stationary, and he could see Remus and Peter still in the Great Hall, and he spotted James moving slowly towards the Entrance Hall accompanied by Abbott and Linda Peakes. Searching swiftly amid the hundreds and hundreds of black dots, he found the hospital wing, and a small dot labelled 'Lily Evans'. He searched around that area for anyone he knew, or anyone assosciated with her, but found no-one. He knew anyway that the mystery flower sender wouldn't attempt it this early in the evening, but it was worth a try. He muttered, 'Mischief managed', to wipe the map blank, and replaced it, telling himself he would keep an eye on Lily's little black dot.

It wasn't until hours later, after Sirius had smuggled the Map from James's trunk (and silently justifying that it was partly _his _map too), that Sirius finally accomplished what he was trying to do. He had sneaked out of the dormitory and was crouched in one of the many little chambers concealed behind a painting, with his wand alight and held above the parchment. He'd been watching it tirelessly for the last fifteen minutes, staring at Lily Evans in her hospital bed, jumping whenever he noticed a dot flitting by near her only to discover it was Madam Pomfrey.

Then, a dot roamed just outside the hospital wing, not in the corrdiors connected to it but the part which looked out on the mountains and the never-ending scenery. It was zig-zagging around, almost in circles, and Sirius watched it in confusion as it passed through the window and stood stationary in the hospital wing itself.

The black dot moved, very slowly, to Lily Evans.

His heart thumping, Sirius followed the dot with his eyes as it came very close to her. It remained there for a minute or two, and then, too slowly, the dot started to retrace its steps. Sirius wanted to run down to the hospital wing, but an unyeilding desire to watch the dot kept him from tearing his eyes away from the parchment.

The small black circle eventually moved through the window and zig-zagged away again.

Sirius watched, a mix of emotions running through him. He didn't know what had happened to Lily. He didn't know what the dot was doing there. He didn't know whether he should burst through the doors of the hospital wing to tell Lily what he had just seen. He stayed in the dark, dank passageway, staring unblinkingly at Lily Evans's dot until he fell asleep.

The small black dot belonged to Severus Snape.

**OoO**

Sirius awoke feeling slightly queasy. He was in his dormitory, but it took a while for him to sift through his foggy memory and recall how he came to be there. He remembered waking up with his neck angled at an awkward position, his breath clouding in front of him and his toes so numb he could hardly feel them. He didn't know what time that was, only that it must have been very early in the morning, and dragged his heavy body up to his common room to fall into bed without a thought to what he had discovered. Presently, though, the realization fell upon him like a heavy weight. It was Snape who had been sending the flowers. But why? Weren't they always at a constant feud? And did he know why Lily was in the hospital wing in the first place?

Musing upon this while he buttered his toast, sat alone at the long House table, Sirius searched the Slytherin table carefully to find the person he was thinking of. Snape looked sullen as usual, sat next to Mulciber and Avery, both of whom were eating rather clumsily and laughing about something nondescript.

Sirius searched in his bag for his timetable to see that, with a feeling of dread, he had Potions first. Though he was pretty happy that he'd made a real effort in his last class, he didn't think he could stand an hour working by himself with three sets of glaring eyes constantly boring into him. Plus, Potions meant that Slughorn would be pining for his best student, and the ache of guilt would return, and he didn't want to have to face that again. So when morning lessons started and the usual herd of students began making their way to classrooms, Sirius sprinted up to the common room to drop his bag off. It wasn't the first time he'd skipped a lesson, and Slughorn wasn't particularly strict, so what was the worst that could happen?

A handful of sixth-years were lounging on the sofas enjoying their free period as Sirius dumped his stuff upstairs in his dormitory. He just had to make sure he wasn't seen by any teachers, and if he was, he could simply make up an excuse. It had happened several times before and he'd just gotten detention.

Sirius' heart quickened as he walked quickly along the empty corridors and reached the hospital wing doors. He could hear only silence within, and even the fretting voice of Madam Pomfrey was absent. Taking a deep breath, he pushed open the doors, taking in the acid smell that immediately hit him, and found the bed occupied by the girl with long red hair flowing out onto the pillow.

She was awake, though she looked extremely tired, and her almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise as he approached. Sirius sat down in the chair by her bedside, and he couldn't ignore the large frothy bunch of liles that were placed proudly on the table, looking bigger than before and somehow more beautiful.

'Where's Pomfrey?' was the first thing Sirius said.

'She's in the office,' Lily replied after a while. She was looking extremely wary at the sight of him. Sirius noticed she was paler than usual, and she was even speaking as though she was exhausted. 'She's gone to fill out some forms...won't be out for a while.'

Sirius nodded. He was trying hard not to look at the lilies. Lily herself was still watching him, and he wanted to tell her right away, yet he thought he should keep it from her as long as possible, or at least attempt to make some polite conversation first.

'Feeling any better?'

'A bit,' she said as though she hadn't really thought about it. 'Madam Pomfrey says I can be let out tomorrow.'

'That's, er, good,' Sirius said rather lamely, although it didn't seem like she was fit to be learning when she looked so frail. 'And...does anyone know, you know, about how you - '

'I told Mary I tripped on the fourth-floor staircaise,' interrupted Lily coldly. 'If that's what you meant.'

'Yeah,' Sirius replied. Then, thinking he might as well get it over with, as she was starting to acquire that determinedly stony-faced look and he didn't want to say it when she was annoyed at him, he said, 'Listen, I know who's been sending you the - '

'I already know,' Lily interrupted again.

'It's - what?' Sirius stared in complete disbelief. He couldn't see how Lily could have known about it. Had she been awake when Snape had snuck into the hospital wing? Did she have some kind of Marauder's Map too?

'He sent a note,' Lily explained flatly. 'In the flowers. See.'

Sirius reached into the cloud of liles, inhaling the almost sickly sweet scent, and pulled out a small white card buried inbetween the silky lilac petals. It was very short, and the handwriting was small and rather spiky: _I'm so sorry - Sev._

Sirius re-read the note a number of times. Why was Snape sending stupid notes in flowers to Lily while she was sleeping in the hospital wing? The thought was rather weird. And the fact that they were lilies was all too cheesy and cliché. Snape didn't seem the type to do anything like that, anyway. He didn't even like Lily. Did he? Sirius hadn't seen him go anywhere near the hospital wing, except for on the Map, or look worried at the breakfast table because she wasn't there, or roam about on the grounds looking for lilies to pick. It just didn't seem like him.

Lily was looking at the flowers almost sadly. They were a magnificent centrepiece next to Lily's glass of water and pain medicine, but somehow they drooped, looking forlorn as though they longed to be back outside basking in sunlight.

'I've been getting new ones every day,' Lily said quietly.

'But never with a note in?' Sirius asked sharply.

She shook her head.

Sirius wondered if he should tell her how he knew Snape had been sending the flowers, since she hadn't asked, but he didn't feel that she wanted to know. He began to detect another smell besides the fragrance of the flowers, something that smelled minty, but he didn't think much of it.

'Did you see him come in, then?' Lily asked.

'Erm...yeah,' Sirius said uncomfortably. 'Not him in person, but I did see it.'

Lily looked puzzled but didn't question it.

'It just doesn't seem like him,' Sirius sighed, partly to change the subject.

'It's his handwriting.'

'Has he come to visit you? Besides in the night, I mean?'

'No.'

Sirius started to think that she really wasn't bothered who had sent them at all. Why was she so sleepy? It was morning; she must have had _some_ rest.

'Why are you here, anyway?'

Sirius was taken aback by her sudden question. She knew the obvious answer, of course, but he remembered telling her he wasn't going to find out, and in spite of himself he had and was skipping a class just to sit by her bedside. He wished now that he'd gone to Potions after all.

'Er. Didn't fancy Potions and I knew who'd been sending you flowers so I thought I'd, er, visit you.' It sounded even more pathetic when he said it out loud. Luckily, she just nodded.

'Well, I'd best go, you seem tired,' Sirius said, reaching back into the flowers. 'Don't want to be seen by Pomfrey, anyway...'

As he replaced the card, he noticed that the faint scent of mint intensified. Flummoxed, Sirius leaned his head deeper into the lilies, and layered over the light, fresh fragrance was that strange mint smell. It was familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

'Are lilies supposed to smell like mint?' Sirius asked Lily, who was watching him closely. 'Is there mint in this bouquet?'

He must have looked strange, lifting the flower heads to bury his own deep into the petals and find the mint smell. Where had he smelled it before? It was a very strong mint, almost like chewing gum or mouthwash...

'Mouthwash!' Sirius shouted to a shocked Lily. 'Mint mouthwash! Come on, where have I smelled that before? Not in the bathroom...mint mouthwash...'

And then it came to him, the day when he was working alone, when James was glaring, when Slughorn gave him a nod of approval, slicing up a Sophophorous Bean and almost slicing his finger.

'Living Death!' burst out Sirius. 'Potions, Evans, you weren't there, but we made the Draught of - of Living Death or something, and it smelled exactly like this! It causes a really deep sleep or - I can't remember but it's why you're so tired! Oh my God, he's spiked the flowers, what a sick little slimeball!'

'Excuse me, Mr. Black!' came a shrill voice from behind them, and an irate Madam Pomfrey was bustling over to them with a couple of peices of parchment grasped in her hand. 'You are supposed to be in _lessons_, young man, and you have interrupted my paperwork with your outburst - '

'-Madam Pomfrey, please - '

'- now leave this poor girl to rest!'

Sirius grabbed the flowers and rammed them into Madam Pomfrey's arms. 'Take them, they've got a potion on them, the Draught of Living Death - '

'Mr. Black, I _hardly_ think that flowers would hold such - '

'Take them to Slughorn! He'll tell you! If you don't, I will, I'm supposed to be in his lesson now, actually - '

'Right you are!' Madam Pomfrey scalded. 'I suggest that's where you go or else I will have to command the Headmaster - '

'He'll tell you as well! Just smell them. Lilies aren't supposed to smell like that.'

Madam Pomfrey glared at him, but obediently bent her head to inhale the lilies. Her brow furrowed as she took in the strange scent, the scent that wasn't supposed to be there.

'Mr. Black, it appears that there is something that seems to have been sprayed on these lilies - ' She held up a hand to silence him from his shout of triumph. ' - _however_, we cannot be sure that it is the potion which you have mentioned. I will take these to Professor Slughorn, and you will wait here.'

Sirius flopped back in his chair, feeling that, among all his shock and anger, and triumph, that at least he wouldn't have to go back to face Slughorn. He looked over at Lily - it was the first time he had seen her properly since his dispute with Madam Pomfrey. She seemed unable to say anything, and for the first time, looked absolutely petrified.

'He - he put _that_ on them?' Lily said.

'Yeah,' said Sirius, and then the knowledge actually absorbed that Snape _had_ put the potion on the flowers, and replaced them every day, probably so that the scent wouldn't fade, in order to make Lily...what? What would eventually have happened? Would she slowly drift into unconsciousness? And why would Snape do something like that? Sirus balled his fists in anger. He had never hated anyone more.

'Why?' whispered Lily.

'Because he's evil?' Sirius suggested sharply. 'Because he's a sodding - '

'Why would he say he was sorry on the note?' said Lily, her voice cracking. 'Sorry for what? Trying to kill me?'

'Don't - '

'He was!' said Lily exasperatedly. 'What else could he have wanted to do? Practice his flower-arranging? I don't think so.'

'Evans, calm down - '

'Don't tell me to calm down!' Lily interrupted shakily. 'You may have found out that he was putting a sodding potion on my flowers, but you're the reason I'm in here, and I swear when I get out of here I'll find Sev - '

'Evans!' Sirius shouted roughly. 'Will you be quiet, please? I'm trying to think!'

'You don't _have_ to be here. I do! If you want to think, get out!'

'I've been told to stay here!' Sirius argued. 'I just stopped you from going into a lifelong sleep and you bloody repay me by - '

'Don't even try that,' Lily warned coldly. 'Don't even _try_ to be like James.'

'I'm not _trying_ to be like James, you're just avoiding what I'm saying because you know it's true!'

'Fine! Fine. Thank you. Thank you for saving my life,' Lily said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

'Good to see you're showing gratitude to people who deserve it,' Sirius muttered.

'Good to see you're being big-headed as usual,' Lily retorted.

They sat in silence for a while, listening to thuds and muffled voices from the corridors that lay outside the hospital wing. There was only he and Lily occupying it at all.

It was when he could hear Madam Pomfrey and Professor Slughorn's worried voices that a thought occured to him. James would wonder where Sirius had been, and if the school found out that Lily was unknowingly harbouring some flowers infected with deadly potion, and it was Sirius who had discovered this, James would be even angrier with him than he already was.

'-I just can't imagine how this would - '

'Do you know for sure who sent the flowers?'

'No, no, Horace, I haven't seen anyone and neither has Miss Evans - but the note - '

The hospital wing doors opened. Madam Pomfrey led the way, followed by a stern-looking Slughorn, his walrus moustache aquiver.

'Miss Evans is right here...and Mr Black - '

'Was present when the infected flowers were discovered, I take it?'

'He found them to be infected, yes.'

Madam Pomfrey and Slughorn had reached the bedside. Madam Pomfrey looked slightly sympathetic.

'Miss Evans, Professor Slughorn here has detected that the flowers have indeed been contaminated with the Draught of Living Death. We urge you to remain calm - '

'We don't think that the flower sender would have known the flowers were - er - unsafe, of course,' assured Slughorn. 'If he had, he wouldn't have sent the note...'

'Mr Snape will be dealt with,' Madam Pomfrey finished firmly.

'He is in my House, and I shall make sure he recieves appropriate punishment, don't worry, m'dear.'

Lily nodded rather cautiously. What that punishment was, neither she nor Sirius were sure.

'We think it would be best for you to remain here for one more day, until the effects of the potion wear off, and then you will be allowed to go.'

'Could you not tell anyone, please?' Sirius said rather sharply, feeling as though he shouldn't be allowed to speak. Lily, Madam Pomfrey and Slughorn all turned to look at him.

'The matter will of course be kept private,' Slughorn nodded finally. 'Merlin knows what would happen if the whole school found out. Mr. Black, though I am extremely grateful, I think you will need to attend an evening class with me tonight to catch up on the work you missed. Transformation potions are curiously tricky, I may say...'

'Yes, sir,' said Sirius rather reluctantly.

'Thank you, Mr. Black, you may go,' Madam Pomfrey instructed.

Sirius got up and left the hospital wing, feeling three pairs of eyes watching him go. He was starting to think that helping Lily out was more trouble than it was worth.


	13. Twelve: Lit Match

_A__/N: Presenting chapter zwölf. Poor Sirius is abandoned by his friends after his recent blunder - but the upcoming match against Hufflepuff hails. Will their squabble be forgotten in the excitement of the match? Will Sirius thwack a Bludger towards James in frustration? Anyway, yeah, this is chapter twelve, enjoy it. I liked writing about the match, actually; it was fun. Yep._**  
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><p><strong>Twelve<strong>

**Lit Match  
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The weeks that passed were extremely tiresome. Sirius had to endure gloating, contemptous looks from his little brother (though nothing had gotten out about Remus yet), vicious glares from Snape (Sirius thought that he had recieved his punishment and had a feeling Snape knew it was Sirius who had unfurled his plan) and strange looks of puzzlement from James (he looked extremely suspicious when Sirius walked into Herbology but did not ask where Sirius had been in the previous lesson, as they were still not on speaking terms). Apart from these downsides, the whole flower episode had been hushed up rather well, as Snape appeared not to have told anyone and Lily came out of the hospital wing resuming her tripping-over-the-staircase excuse. No-one knew Snape had sent seemingly-innocent flowers to Lily Evans which had actually been sprayed with the Draught of Living Death, and though Sirius would have loved dearly to see Snape get viciously punished for this, he was relieved that it was all kept quiet. He didn't need any more trouble from James demanding why Sirius had skipped Potions to visit Lily Evans - if he would actually speak to him, of course.

On top of this, he had mounds of homework to complete without the help of his friends and Abbott keeping the Quidditch team working until they were literally too numb with cold to fly. They were co-operating fairly well considering James and Sirius were not speaking to each other at all, and despite this, Sirius was confident that the upcoming first match against Hufflepuff would be easy to win.

Sirius walked into the Great Hall on the evening of October the thirty-first, thoroughly looking forward to the delicious food and cheery atmosphere, although he deflated at the thought of eating alone. It would be the first Halloween feast he had attended without his friends enjoying it with him, and even the fluttering bats roaming about the ceiling and live skeletons clattering along the House tables holding trays of pumpkin juice could not distract him from that. Shrugging and telling himself he did not care, he sat beside Linda Peakes and David Scott, his fellow Beater and Chaser on the team, thinking he could at least discuss Quidditch strategies if he wasn't going to eat with his friends.

Determinedly avoiding the three Marauders' eyes, Sirius helped himself to lamb chops, potatoes and butternut squash, making conversation with Peakes and Scott but slightly wishing he could be with his friends. He scanned the table - Lily was looking reasonably healthy and happy, which was good as she had been miserable ever since she returned to lessons. He wondered if she had spoken to Snape yet, but by the way she completely disregarded his existence whenever they had a lesson together, he doubted it.

After Sirius had cleared his plate of pumpkin pie, and listened agitatedly to Dumbledore's speech about the most important date of the wizarding world and celebrating the union of witches and wizards and magical creatures alike, he began to feel extremely glad that the feast was now over. The rather comedic skeletons opened the double doors (which were embellished with ivy snaking elaborately along the wood) grandly to let everyone out, and Sirius wasted no time dawdling. He just wanted to be nice and safe in the dormitory.

Once he was there, however, he found that James, Remus, Peter and Arnold had already occupied it, and were sharing a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, with amusing results. Feeling as though his prescence definitely wouldn't be welcome, Sirius headed down to the common room instead, but he wasn't entertained by Adam Wood and his seventh-year friends attempting to make an exploding pumpkin. Irritated, he stepped out of the portrait hole and walked along the corridors without a particular destination.

He thought he heard distant meows once or twice, and, not keen to be spotted by Mrs. Norris, doubled back and took secret passageways whenever he thought she was close. Not that he was doing anything wrong anyway...he wasn't supposed to be out of the common room when it was late, but he didn't see what harm could come from it, and it wasn't as though he was out on the grounds. He contemplated finding Snape and confronting him, maybe jinxing him a little to see how much pain it would cause, but he realised he was on the fifth floor and didn't want to go all the way down to the dungeons.

He rounded a corner and came face-to-face with someone. At first, Sirius thought it was Professor McGonagall, and panicked slightly, but it wasn't her at all. It was Lily Evans.

'What are you doing here?' she asked instantly, her eyes narrowing.

'Night-time stroll,' Sirius shrugged. 'What about you?'

'I'm on patrol, idiot,' Lily replied.

'So isn't Remus supposed to be with you? He's in the common room - '

'I told him I could do patrols on my own.' Lily smiled coldly.

'Right. You wanted to find Snivellus, didn't you?'

'No,' she answered promptly. 'I thought he deserved it after I'd been in the hospital wing all those weeks and he'd had to do it on his own.'

'Ah. Nice of you. Maybe those flowers _did_ do something to your head - '

'You know I could take House points from you?' she said flatly.

'Why would you do that? You'd just be lessening the chance of your own House winning the Cup. And I thought you were clever!'

'Just get back to the common room before I really _do_ take House points from you.'

Sirius ignored this; he wasn't about to let Lily Evans tell him what to do. 'So, nice feast, wasn't it?'

She hesitated. 'Yeah, it was alright. You weren't sat with your usual lot, though, were you?'

Feeling slightly annoyed as she had brought this up on purpose, Sirius replied, 'Yeah, we have our differences. Contrary to popular opinion.' He smiled falsely at Lily, who did not return it.

'Right. Well, I need to finish patrols,' Lily stated obviously.

'I'll not keep you then. Happy Halloween!' Sirius said over-enthusiastically. He turned around to go back the way he came.

'Er, Black?'

Sirius paused, and looked over his shoulder. Lily was still stood motionless. Then she said, most unwillingly, 'er, thanks, you know, for finding out the flowers were, well...and thanks for - for coming to see me.' She looked as uncomfortable as Sirius felt.

'No problem, Evans. Careful on patrols, now. Don't want to get out of hospital only to go right back in again.'

**OoO**

With only two days until his first Quidditch match of the season, Sirius' nerves were starting to get the better of him, and the fact that he had no friends to console him did not help. Still, going to training sessions helped him realize that the others shared his nerves and anticipation, and he thoroughly enjoyed an hour spent with Linda Peakes on the empty Quidditch pitch that Thursday, whacking the Bludger at each other to vent out their feelings (and also to improve their aim). Abbott maintained his proud confidence that they were going to win, and this helped the other team members too, so that by the time Friday evening came, the seven of them were huddled in squashy armchairs by the common room fire discussing tactics.

'Hufflepuff are good, but we're better,' Abbott stated plainly. 'We've got _James Potter_, for Merlin's sake!'

There was an excited murmur of agreement to which James beamed proudly.

'Hufflepuff's brooms are seriously outdated,' Eleanor Boot said, grinning.

'Except George Summers,' Amelia Bones put in. '_He's_ got a Cleansweep Five.'

Now a few gasps of disbelief rippled around the circle. It looked like James wanted to say to Sirius, 'I told you so,' referring to their conversation on the train months ago, but held back.

'So has James,' Linda Peakes pointed out. 'And Summers is only Keeper, which doesn't really need a good broom, whereas James is going to be great on his Cleansweep.'

'Well, I can't deny that, can I?' James grinned, to whoops and laughs.

'We'll need to take precautions if the weather's bad,' Abbott told the group. 'I don't think it will be, but if it's raining, you'll need to charm your goggles so they repel water - '

'How on earth do we do that?' asked David Scott, a third-year who was nice but very quiet.

'_Impervius_,' James said immediately. 'I do it on my glasses, it works like a treat - '

' - and if it's extremely sunny, you'll need to fly out of the sun. Don't let it get in your eyes - that kind of thing could seriously damage our chances.'

'What about if it's really windy?' Sirius asked curiously.

'Yeah, any charms that repel the wind?' Eleanor joked.

'We'll have to make do, I think,' said Abbott bracingly. 'Okay, remember everything I told you. Just get some sleep, guys, and I'll see you in the changing rooms tomorrow morning. Kick-off at nine thirty!'

**OoO**

Sirius awoke very early on the day of the match, so early, in fact, that the sun had not yet risen, though birds were tweeting faintly outside. Peter was snoring rather loudly and the rest of his roommates all seemed to be asleep. He thought about the match in a few hours' time...he was extremely nervous. He suddenly felt a stab of jealousy that James seemed to be completely unperturbed and so confident...it was okay for him, _he_ had a Cleansweep Five and undeniable talent on the pitch, plus a huddle of girls that attended his matches to egg him on. Sirius wondered if anyone would come to see him play...his mind wandered back to Lily sat in the stands at trials, and then remembered she was only there because of Adam Wood. What was the thing about Wood, anyway? He can't have been that good of a Beater because Sirius had the position now. The feeling of smugness that accompanied this thought somehow made him feel better about the match.

He laid in bed for a while, waiting for the dark dormitory to slowly emerge to his eyes as the weak sun rose and spilled through the windows. It wasn't time for breakfast yet, though, so he read a passage from _Beating the Bludgers: A Study of Defensive Strategies in Quidditch_ only to throw it back down on the bedside table as it wasn't a good enough distraction and he remembered it was James's, anyway. He got up and dressed in his Quidditch robes, pulled out his Shooting Star from beneath his bed, and went downstairs and straight out of the portrait hole.

When he entered the Great Hall the first thing he did was look up to the ceiling. It was enchanted so that it replicated the sky outside, and at the moment it depicted a cornflower-blue sky textured with fuffy white clouds. Feeling that this was good and at least it wasn't raining, Sirius sat down at the House table laden with breakfast food, though he wasn't very hungry. A few early risers were eating placidly, with red-and-gold Gryffindor scraves draped round their necks as dedication to their team. David Scott, dressed in Quidditch robes also, was eating a bowl of cereal with trembling hands. He was the only member of the team that was awake too. He looked more terrified than one who was about to be eaten by a bear.

Managing just a few bites of toast, Sirius resigned to repeating strategies to himself to calm his nerves. This was lost, however, when most of the students came rambling in through the double doors, cheering and adorning their House scarves or waving flags coloured either red or yellow (which rippled for effect even when stationary). Abbott sat the team together at one end of the House table, recieving the appreciative claps on the back with a wide grin and even shouting in astonishment when he found that someone had made a handful of enchanted badges - they were red, emblazoned with a golden lion which growled the names of the Gryffindor Quidditch team repeatedly, and seemed to make Abbott highly amused ('Just like at the World Cup!' he remarked).

He led them down to the changing rooms, commenting excitedly that it was perfect weather conditions, and gave them a pre-match pep talk that would hopefully inspire confidence and motivation in all of them. All it did, however, was make Sirius even more scared as he contemplated the fact that the whole school would be watching him.

Then a strange, unexpected thing happened as everyone was ordered to leave the changing rooms. James called for Sirius to stay behind, so he did, feeling slightly wary and half-wishing that he could run out onto the pitch and get the match over and done with instead of facing James for the first time in about a month.

'Sirius, mate,' James began, rather awkwardly. 'I know I got mad at you, and you really did get me angry, but...nothing's happened since then, you know, about Moony, and I just think I've been avoiding you for too long - Moony and Wormtail wanted me to say this ages ago - '

'It's fine, mate,' Sirius heard himself say, somehow feeling utter relief. James didn't apologize very often, and the fact that he was standing in the changing rooms wanting to repair their friendship made it that much easier to forget about everything. 'I know. I shouldn't have let him find out - '

'But I don't want us to go into a match still not talking - '

'Me neither, Prongs. Forget about it all, yeah?'

James nodded, mirroring Sirius' relief. 'Yeah.' He clapped his best friend on the back, and then, finding that his nerves had suddenly dropped considerably, they both strode out onto the pitch. Through the hundreds and hundreds of indistinct faces shining out onto the Quidditch pitch, Sirius could make out Remus and Peter cheering exuberantly, and could not stop a smile spreading across his face. Now he was back with the three Marauders again, the probability to win the match seemed so much more likely.

Abbott shook hands with George Summers, the tall, curly-haired Hufflepuff Captain whom they had spoken of back in September, and then all fourteen players mounted their brooms. Mr McLudus, the Quidditch coach, sharply blew his whistle. Instantly, a thousand mad cheers erupted from the stands, and a mingled blur of red and yellow shot skywards - the match had begun.

James gave Sirius a swift grin which was gone in an instant as he whipped around looking for the Snitch. Sirius flicked his hair out of his eyes, his hand held firmly on his club. He could make out Abbott grasping the Quaffle firmly in his hands, ready to pass to Amelia Bones, and concentrated on the opposing Beaters, Doyle and Bayer, and any attempts they might make to hit the Bludger in the Gryffindor Chasers' direction.

The commentator, a friendly but rather small-minded seventh year Ravenclaw called Michael Seenhart, was shouting the match to the enthusiastic crowd.

'And Gryffindor in possession there, Bones with the Quaffle, she's rather speedy too - new team members this year, so perhaps a revived victory for the Cup this year as well? Black makes an interesting contribution to the team as Beater, and also Boot as Keeper - GRYFFINDOR SCORES! Excellent, Gryffindor...they lead ten points to zero...'

Amelia beamed as she scored the team's first goal; Abbott high-fived her as he passed. Sirius looked for James to see if he was any closer to finding the Snitch, but it appeared not, for he was circling ten feet above them in desperation.

'It's Gryffindor Captain Abbott with the Quaffle now, going remarkably fast toward the scoring area, he _must_ be determined, and a Bludger comes his way, aimed by Doyle - '

Sirius instantly zoomed over, wasting no time, and seeing that Linda Peakes was at the other end of the pitch and could not possibly save it, he swung his club at the Bludger which was inches from the tail of Abbott's broom.

'Black successfully diverts the Bludger there, and - woah, that's nearly got Summers on the head! Abbott inches closer to the scoring area - he shoots - and he scores! Gryffindor lead twenty points to zero!'

Sirius's confidence mounted as the game wore on. Linda Peakes made an excellent partner; she was perceptive and never failed to thwack a Bludger away from a Chaser or, indeed, Sirius himself when he was pre-occupied looking for James and Doyle had decided to take a shot at him. Abbott had scored twice more; Hufflepuff had scored once but Eleanor Boot was so angry with herself for letting the Quaffle in that she seemed fiercely determined to not let it happen again.

'Okay, so Hufflepuff now in possession, Captain Summers with the Quaffle now, and he passes to Roberts, who passes to Patil, and it's back to Summers again - the score at the moment is fourty to ten, will Hufflepuff score? Summers seems triumphant, Boot looks distracted - what's happening?'

Sirius swerved to his left to see an angry Bludger speeding towards Keeper Eleanor Boot, who was torn between trying to get away from it and protect the hoops to stop Hufflepuff scoring. Dodging a second Bludger coming his way, Sirius put on a burst of speed - Summers was preparing to shoot. In his desperation, he almost collided with Hufflepuff Seeker Jones, but she rocketed upwards just in time. Sirius brought his club back around his head - he was nearing the Bludger, which was about five feet away from Eleanor, and, in all the confusion, Summers scored the second that Sirius knocked the Bludger off-course towards the Beater who had sent it, Bayer.

'And the Bludger's been taken care of, but Hufflepuff score! That's still Gryffindor in the lead though, fourty points to twenty!'

Amelia Bones was looking distraught, and Abbott had a fit of rage in mid-air that Bayer had managed to distract their Keeper. Eleanor looked furious and Linda instantly catapulted a nearby Bludger towards Bayer, but he only hit it back, in an upward direction - towards James.

Sirius flew a little above the stands and saw James notice the Bludger nearing him and dive downwards, going so fast he became a red blur. He joined Sirius with a look of utmost anger. Sirius knew what had happened; he had seen the Snitch and had now lost it again due to the Bludger diversion.

'Keep looking, mate,' Sirius shouted, and flew towards David Scott, who was in posession of the Quaffle, in case Doyle or Bayer wanted to throw the Bludger at him. He could faintly hear Seehart's commentary through the tumultous roar from the Gryffindor end of the stands, as Scott neared the scoring area and the Keeper prepared to save.

'Alright, that's another new addition to the team, Chaser Scott prepares to score, and - OOOH! Saved by the Hufflepuff Keeper Presbury! Too bad, Scott - and that's a Bludger in Presbury's direction aimed by a furious-looking Black...which Beater Doyle ricochets back to Bones, who is now in possession, and she swerves! Nice one, Bones...she passes to Abbott, who passes it back, and - intercepted by Patil there! No, no, now it's Abbott again, and he passes to Scott - he ducks a Bludger - he dodges Chaser Roberts - it's intense, it's intense, will he score? YES! HE SCORES! Fifty to twenty, Gryffindor in the lead!'

The roars and cheers were louder than Sirius had ever heard this match; he whooped along with the others, shaking his club high above his head, and then he saw what was unmistakably James, cutting fast through the air with determination all over his face; the opposing Seeker Jones was behind him - she was increasing speed, she was catching him up - Sirius could not hear the commentary nor was he watching out for Bludgers: he knew James had seen the Snitch. James was so fast and fierce it was unbelievable; Sirius saw the shimmer of gold and then James engulfed it, and he rose high in the air with a Snitch in his hand, and the cheers and applause and claps mingled into one huge din, and scarlet was shining proudly all around the stands. The team regrouped into one huddle suspended in mid-air, throwing their arms round each other, shouting in triumph, and then they all slowly came back down to the ground.

McGonagall looked extremely pleased as the whole team, plus Gryffindors of every shape and size, flooded onto the pitch. Remus and Peter were cheering themselves hoarse. James looked on the edge of bursting with satisfaction and Sirius could not have been happier; he had never been involved in an official Quidditch match and so the euphoria was new to him. Amelia Bones kissed him happily on the cheek, Linda Peakes had her arms thrown around him, congratulating him on his Beater skills, and Abbott looked as though he wanted to kiss every single person in sight.

No matter how much he had believed otherwise, and no matter how long he had watched enviously as his brother basked in the adoration of his parents, Sirius felt at that moment that he really _did_ belong.


	14. Thirteen: High Spirits

**Thirteen**

**High Spirits  
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A party had, of course, been organized after the success of the Quidditch match that morning, something Sirius always enjoyed but never truly felt he had contributed to (this time was different, obviously), and the Marauders had promised that they would be providing the refreshments. After a morning spent with his team in the changing rooms reminiscing to each other several highlights of the match, and an afternoon with the three Marauders enjoying a celebratory Butterbeer in The Three Broomsticks, Sirius was very much looking forward to the party ahead. James displayed a rare act of generosity and bought several slabs of Honeydukes chocolate that he said would be shared for the Gryffindors at the party, and then they trooped back up to the castle just as a light drizzle had begun to fall on the grounds.

'Right, let's go to the kitchens and get some stuff, we'll need to get everything set up in the, what, half hour that we've got before people will want to get in the party mood.' James led them all down to the basement, and the narrow corridor which they were all so familiar with. A painting of a bowl of fruit stood before them, and Sirius tickled the pear painted in the bowl, which promptly turned into a green handle. He pushed the door open and the Marauders entered the kitchens.

They visited several times a week to get food, and, as usual, the house-elves that worked there greeted them cheerfully when they walked in. The kitchens were the same size and shape as the Great Hall above it, and had four long tables which replicated the House tables in the Hall. Shiny copper pots and pans adorned the walls, polished so meticulously that the house-elves which crowded the kitchens could be seen reflected in them, contorted into weird shapes.

'Good evening, sirs!' squeaked a small house-elf, named Sneazle, who had become something of a friend to the Marauders. 'Dinner has just finished, sirs, but Sneazle could bring you some leftover casserole if you is wishing, sirs - '

'That's okay, Sneazle,' Remus grinned, who treated the house-elves best out of all four of them. 'We just want some stuff for a party.'

They took a seat at one of the empty wooden tables.

'We won in a Quidditch match today,' James put in as though he wasn't able to stop himself.

'Congratulations, then, sirs!' said Sneazle happily, while house-elves behind him set to work at once. 'Well, we is making you your food, then, and lots of it, sirs, Sneazle isn't disappointings, sirs.'

Within minutes, the obedient house-elves had brought to the table a selection of delicious snacks: crisps, Cauldron Cakes, pasties, cream buns, pies, peanuts and profiteroles, all heaped next to several bottles of Butterbeer, pumpkin fizz and a clear, conical flask of Gillywater, which the Marauders didn't particulary drink but brought anyway as Abbott had specifically requested it. With thanks, the four of them loaded the food and drink onto a large silver tray and exited the kitchens, watching out for any passing teachers or disruptive ghosts - particuarly Peeves - who might prolong their journey back up to Gryffindor Tower. They made it back fairly quickly, facing an empty common room, and set out the food (James cleverly magicked it to float in the air unsupported which meant they had more space). Sirius made red-and-gold streamers erupt from his wand which draped over candelebras and the frames of paintings, and Remus set up the wireless so the volume was magically modified to blast out music louder than necessary. By this time, the rest of the Gryffindor team had arrived, and so did many sixth- and seventh-years, who helped to raise the atmosphere in the common room. The team were already ecstatic, but the party needed a definite boost.

It was getting all the more crowded as the hours went on and people cheered, danced and helped themselves to food. Nearly everybody was slightly too happy as, though they had every reason to be, five or six bottles of oak-matured mead had found their way to the drinks selection and Adam Wood had downed a lot of it just to impress his girl fans. Sirius got hold of someone's bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhisky and decided to empty it into the bottles of Butterbeer (he was a little tipsy already and James said it would be highly amusing). He even tried some of Abbott's favourite Gillywater, which turned out to be fairly revolting. By eleven, Peter was nowhere to be seen and Remus was dancing slightly awkwardly with Linda Peakes, Butterbeer clutched in his hand; James was by Sirius's side, discussing the match loudly as they swigged mead. James had had considerably more than his best friend, and it showed in his slurred speech and inability to string words together.

'You know, I'm so gl - glad we won. You - you really helped the...er...team, you know, the team. Great Beater, Padfoot.'

'You're a great Seeker, mate,' Sirius managed to reply; he could hardly stand up and the music was pounding in his head. He was still in an extremely good mood, though; the large banners hung up around the common room flashing 'GRYFFINDOR VICTORY' in gold reminded him of that.

'We'll win the Cup!' James roared, thrusting his goblet of mead into the air like a glorious beacon. 'I know we will!'

'Great match, guys!' Ramona Brown suddenly gushed, coming out of nowhere and batting her eyelashes. 'You were amazing, James, when you saw the Snitch, it just - '

'Don't say it,' James whispered dramatically, putting a finger to her lips. 'I'm great. I know.'

She giggled like a little girl, batting his hand away, and then retreated back into the crowd of dancing Gryffindors in the centre of the common room.

Sirius stared around for a moment, looking for where Peter had got to, and instead his eyes fell upon Lily Evans, looking iridescent as she danced with Mary, her red hair shimmying around her shoulders and her eyes alight with happiness. Some sort of light seemed to radiate around her, like fireflies, or at least it seemed that way to Sirius, and her _hair_. Was it always that shiny?

He was distracted by a mob of raucous Gryffindors lifting James high in the air, almost as if he was crowd surfing, and a chant began to start up. '_Potter! Potter! Potter!_'

Sirius joined in, splashing his mead everywhere and supporting James' foot, cheering for added effect, joining in with the chant that was now barely audible over the music and the scuffle of drunken feet. He was laughing so much he could hardly see; he started to think maybe he shouldn't have drank so much mead and Firewhisky.

Eventually, James was lowered onto the ground looking immensely pleased with himself, his glasses askew and his hair more untidy than it normally was. He was even more intoxicated than Sirius was; promptly, he raised his hands high in the air and stated raggedly, 'Now, now. Everyone! Everyone. It's not just me...but I play a large part though (the crowd laughed appreciatively at that). It's the _team_...we have a - we have a bloody great team. GRYFFINDOR! YEAH!'

His words sent the Gryffindors into a frenzy; they clapped and jumped up and down, displacing nearby tables and knocking one or two drinks out of each other's hands, and Sirius, caught up in the midst of this, faught his way out of the wild throng to catch his breath. This was the most excited that a party had ever been: Sirius suspected it was because more alcohol had been smuggled into the beverages than necessary. He dreaded to think what it would be like if they won the Cup. There would probably be deaths involved.

Then, out of the corner of Sirius' eye, he spotted Lily, smiling and still cheering though she must have been exhausted. He saw James notice her standing near. He saw James stagger over, throw an arm around her and pull her into an enthusiastic kiss. The surrounding crowd raised an almighty shout of 'Get in there, James!' and 'Nice one!' and 'Lily's loving that!', to which James responded by pulling her even closer. Lily pushed him away a few seconds later, though, and looking completely revolted, she stormed past the surprised students and disappeared through the portrait hole.

Sirius couldn't make out what James' expression showed, as the crowd was too thick now, closing in on his best friend, and Sirius suddenly didn't know what to do. He kept replaying in his mind the last few seconds, of James grinning as he embraced Lily, and found that he didn't think it was funny or clever, but utterly, completely stupid. He picked up another Butterbeer and drank at least half of it in one go; then, spotting Abbott with some of his rowdy sixth-year friends, he made his way through the buffeting crowd to meet them.

'Black!' Abbott said happily as he approached, sloshing his Gillywater in his haste to pull Sirius into a hug. 'Haven't seen you all night - '

'You saw me a few hours ago!'

'Yeah, well, I haven't seen you properly. This is Sirius, by the way, excellent Beater - '

Sirius nodded to Abbott's accquaintances; he recognized them as the two boys who were sat at the breakfast table when he and James had apologized for missing practice, and Hollie Scutcliffe, looking very pretty with a Gryffindor scarf tied like a sash across her front.

'Hey, Hollie.'

'Hi, Sirius - congratulations!'

'Thanks.' He smiled at her rather crookedly. She was really quite nice - he almost felt sorry that she had lost out on Keeper, but then again, Eleanor Boot was a great laugh on the team and played excellent in the match. Plus, if she got on the team she'd be too busy fawning over James.

'...excellent Beater skills, hasn't he?' Abbott was saying to his friends, as he poured a goblet of Gillywater rather carelessly and handed it to Sirius. 'Here you go, mate. No, when Boot was trying to avoid that Bludger and you were over there like a shot! Whacking it in the other direction, just brilliant...'

'He's never going to stop going on about it now,' one of Abbott's friends said jokingly, rolling his eyes.

'Yeah, we haven't won the Cup yet, Ern!' the other reminded him.

'_Yet_,' Abbott repeated knowingly, taking a sip of his own drink.

Sirius spluttered and hastily turned it into a laugh; he had attempted to down his beverage as the fact he was getting drunker didn't stop it from tasting like soapy bath water, but however, the bittery taste still burned his throat.

'Yeah, I think someone's put something in this,' murmured Abbott, peering into his glass. 'Ah well. Hey, did you see James's bit of action over there?' He indicated with his goblet the high-powered frenzy still enclosed on James, and Sirius peered between the bobbing heads to see if he could make out his best friend, but he couldn't.

'Yeah...'

'She didn't look to happy, though, did she? _Lily Evans_...she's the last person I'd have thought James would go for!'

By the looks of things, Hollie didn't look too happy, either. Her bubbly smile had faded at the turn of subject, and she was now sulkily swirling her drink around in the goblet.

Sirius forced a laugh. 'Yeah, well, he's off his head...'

'Don't they _row_ all the time?' Hollie said rather pointedly.

'Well...not all the time,' Sirius replied uncomfortably.

Hollie just raised her eyebrows and stalked off to join Adam Wood, who was now hysterically drunk and had set fire to some streamers to see what effects they would produce (it was rather dazzling, actually, like a cartwheel of gold sparks).

Making his way through the maze of armchairs, tables and the occasional intertwined couple, Sirius walked over to his roommate Arnold, who was spread out on one of the sofas looking rather green. Sirius didn't usually attempt to make contact with Arnold, but he didn't want anyone ruining the party by being voilently sick everywhere, and he doubted Arnold would be as annoying and persistent when he was as drunk as this.

'Arnie, mate, I think you should go up to bed...'

Arnold mumbled incoherently.

Sirius helped Arnold get up; he leaned on Sirius for support and doubled over.

'Seriously, get to the dormitory,' Sirius commanded a little too firmly.

Arnold whimpered and hobbled away to the staircase which led to the boy's dormitory. He suspected Arnold would be in the bathroom for a while, and did not want to retire yet.

Some of the younger students had gone to bed but the party was still going, if a little half-heartedly. Most of the food was demolished, empty drinks bottles lay on the floor along with heaps of scarlet confetti, but ten or fifteen people were still swaying to the wireless and managing hoarse shouts. James was surrounded by people as though he hadn't moved since kissing Lily. Sirius grabbed a nearby Butterbeer, not caring whose it was, and downed it, noting that the Firewhisky was particularly strong and burned his throat. In the midst of a coughing fit, Remus appeared.

'Padfoot! Where have you been?' he said, sounding overly concerned. He was probably still drunk.

'Around,' Sirius shrugged in between gulps of a pumpkin fizz which tasted like a badly mixed cocktail. 'Eugh, this has got some weird stuff in it.'

'Yeah, some people have been throwing drinks around,' Remus said conversationally. 'Have you seen Peter?'

'Nope.'

'I think he's gone to bed. He said to me that he felt ill.'

'What a lightweight - he can't even handle two Butterbeers.'

Remus laughed a little too loudly, and then grabbed a drink from the end table beside a battered armchair, which had been pelted with peanuts, blobs of cream and doused in confetti.

'It'll take ages to clean the common room up,' Remus grinned.

'The house-elves can do it,' Sirius said with another easy shrug. He was now supping someone's mead absent-mindedly. 'S'what they're for. What they're there for. What - what they're - never mind.'

'I think you should sleep,' Remus advised him.

'What time is it?' Sirius questioned curiously, ignoring Remus.

'I dunno, about two in the morning?'

Sirius threw down the empty paper cup and entangled Remus in a strange hug. 'Cool. I'm going to bed, I think I should sleep a while. See you Moony.'

He dragged himself upstairs and flopped onto his bed, fully dressed, until his head stopped spinning and the darkness engulfed him.


	15. Fourteen: Aftermath

_A/N: The classic morning-after-the-night-before chapter. This one's quite short. I liked writing the newspaper article although it was a bit depressing - hey, this is the First Wizarding War, man, we've gotta have some sadness somewhere.  
><em>

* * *

><p><strong>Fourteen<br>**

**Aftermath  
><strong>

Sirius woke up late the next morning with his face mashed into his pillow. Shaking his hair out of his eyes, he heaved himself around and lay on his bed properly with his hands behind his head, which, unsurprisingly, felt like it weighed about two tonnes. Memories from the previous night - or, rather, morning - kept flitting back to him as though they were remnants of a bad dream. He gazed across to the four beds in the dormitory: Arnold, Peter, James and Remus were all fast asleep, snoring rather loudly with open mouths, and James's arm was hanging off the side of his bed, holding an empty goblet dangling inches from the floor.

Sirius heaved himself off of the bed, taking more time than usual owing to the fact that his limbs felt like lead. He didn't feel queasy - he'd survived more drink than this and was used to raging parties anyway as James winning matches was not uncommon - but he just felt extremely tired, and his crumpled clothes smelled strongly of Firewhisky.

He washed and dressed and left his four roommates asleep in the dormitory, hazy with the morning light. He wasn't particularly hungry but decided that a pumpkin juice might awaken him a little more than the hot shower had just done. Entering the common room was like the party really _had _been a dream; it was spotless, returned to its usual state again, all confetti swiped away and bottles collected and taken by the hardworking house-elves at some time shortly before dawn. Sirius wondered whether he would pay them a visit today, or whether they would be busy going about the castle as usual.

A few sluggish Gryffindors were lounging on the sofas, talking rather tiredly after the excitement of the night. Abbott was one of them; he had dark circles under his eyes and he smiled rather weakly when Sirius sat beside him.

'Feeling alright?' he asked.

'Like a dead dog,' Sirius said, running a hand through his hair.

'Here you go,' Abbott said, passing him a purple glass bottle. 'Stocked up on this after we won the match. Best hangover cure, mate.'

The bottle was labelled 'Aleworth & Pentin's Best After-Party Tonic'; Sirius took a swig and handed it back to Abbott. It tasted soothing and slightly fruity, almost like a sore throat lozenge. His thoughts slowly cleared and his head lifted a little, as though he had just brought his head back up from under water.

'Not bad, that,' Sirius sniffed, wiping his mouth from the back of his hand.

'You need quite a lot to make you feel better though,' Abbott said with a grimace. 'It only lasts for an hour or two.' He shook his head bracingly and took a large drink of the tonic.

'Save some for James,' Sirius grinned. 'I think he needs it too.'

He left Abbott to it and climbed out of the portrait hole for breakfast. It was that which brought back the memory of Lily storming out after James had kissed her. Wondering whether James would remember, Sirius entered the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table, where a few people were breakfasting late. Filling up a large goblet with pumpkin juice, he sipped it slowly and waited for the others to join him.

His eye caught a folded _Daily Prophet _on the table a few seats away. No-one was around to claim it, so he picked it up and read the headline: _Dark Mark Over Ministry Worker - Ministry In Panic_. Intrigued, he read the full story, emblazoned with a picture of a fine old house alight with the green glow of a serpent intertwined with a skull, a sight which was now often splashed across the front pages of the newspaper these days.

_The Ministry of Magic faces a dangerous warning which may seriously threaten the reputation of the all-important magical law headquarters, and indeed the wizarding world itself, writes Mauve Merriweather, _Daily Prophet _reporter. Late yesterday night, Rodolphus Summers, Assistant Deputy to the Minister for Magic, arrived at his homely five-bedroomed house in Upper Flagley to find the dreaded Dark Mark looming overhead (see picture). The country house had been torn apart as the Death Eaters had been ruthless in their attempts to terrify the defenceless Ministry worker and his family. Their only son is currently attending Hogwarts School._

_Summers has refused to be questioned, but the _Prophet _can reveal that the house was empty when Death Eaters saught it out, as Summers' wife was staying with her mother in Wales. She has now reunited with her husband and they hope to take their son out of school to stay with them for a short time._

_Though the demolished house came as a shock to the tight-knit family, it was nothing to the slap-in-the-face recieved by the Ministry itself. The unexpected event has undoubtedly tarnished the gleaming silver on the badge which rests upon the Minister's chest; many have begun to see it as a grotesque demonstration to show that not even the Ministry can stand in the way of the notorious Death Eaters. Rumours have spread like wildfire that the next house to be found with the Dark Mark hovering above it will no doubt be Minister for Magic, Millicent Bagnold's. Bagnold has reportedly said that 'this is indeed a horiffic and terrible infliction upon the Summers family, but we will determinedly continue to uphold magical law as it is unquestionably certain that magical co-operation and unity is, not an option, but a priority.'_

_Most Ministry workers are left in a state of disbelief and panic, wanting to leave their jobs before they, too, are faced with the Mark upon their houses and families, as it is the sign the Death Eaters like to display whenever they have killed. Agatha Timms, however, of the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, told the _Prophet _firmly, 'The only thing the Death Eaters killed in that house is the cat.'_

_Her words are true in that no-one was present in the house when the Death Eaters decided to call upon it most uninvited, but, as the burnt and blackened remains of the interior and the near-collapsed second floor sadly shows, it is just one of the countless cases of damage becoming more and more apparent in these troubled times. _

Sirius finished reading, his pumpkin juice churning horribly inside him. Rodolphus Summers was George Summers' father...he looked across at the Hufflepuff table, but could not find the curly-haired Quidditch Captain sat there. He must have been taken out of school already.

Pushing the paper away and wishing he had never read it, Sirius resumed drinking, his mind wrapped in a cloud of thoughts. How horrible it must be to arrive home and see the dreaded Dark Mark clouding it, like some sick badge of honour...he imagined the starry green skull and serpent hovering over Grimmauld Place, but could not feel the terror and panic that he was sure would come with it...with a feeling that was somewhere between amusement and anxiety, he thought to himself that the only reason the Dark Mark would be over _his_ house was because Regulus had put it there in a fit of excitement to show everyone he'd joined the Death Eaters.

He was distracted by James, who slumped next to him clutching his head, his glasses wonky and his black hair sticking out in tufts.

'I...feel...awful,' he mumbled, flopping his head onto the table.

'Good morning to you, too,' Sirius grinned.

James moaned croakily.

Sirius poured James a black coffee and placed it beside him. 'Drink that. Have you tried some of Abbott's tonic?'

'Yeah, and it made me want to throw up,' James groaned.

'I'm not surprised.' Then, tentatively, he asked, 'So, er, remember all the fun and games from last night, then?'

'Games?' gawped James, confusedly. 'We didn't play any games...'

Sirius could only clap James on the back, doing his best to console him while he faught back his laughter. Remus arrived too, slumping at the table looking slightly green, and Peter trailed behind last, with his small, watery eyes so puffy they looked mere slits.

'G'morning,' Remus grunted.

'Alright?' Sirius smiled. 'How you holding up?'

'Not too bad,' Remus replied with a faint smile. 'I think I ate too much...bleurgh...'

Peter looked as though he had dozed off again, his head angled to one side and his mouth hanging open.

'Stop drooling, Pete,' Sirius told him jokily. 'You'll scare everyone away.'

The Marauders, except James, who was still sat with the side of his head pressed to the table while he mumbled 'Don't mix the grape and the grain' and 'Drinks while you're yawning means troll in the morning', ate their breakfast rather absent-mindedly, as each of them were no doubt having flashes of the night before and inwardly cringing.

'What should we do today?' Remus said rather cheerily; his breakfast had improved his well-being, it seemed.

'Go back to bed,' muttered James at once.

'You should,' Sirius advised him. 'No, how about we do the prank? Tonight?'

The three of them looked at him incredulously. The start-of-term prank that they had planned two months ago had been left in its state of uncertain disuse; they had never actually carried out the operation after the confusing run-through that had occured, and what with the Regulus mishap and period of unfriendliness between them, it had never actually been done. Sirius, who was a great lover of practical jokes no matter what shape and size, had been itching to ask them when it was possible for the prank to be done, and last night when they were all drunk out of their minds had not been the ideal time to bring it up again.

'Tonight?' repeated Remus.

'But - nothing's ready - ' spluttered Peter.

'We can't do it _now_,' said James reasonably. 'Think - it's hardly a start-of-term prank, as we're two months in, and we'd need to do it at a specific event to cause as much havoc as possible. I say we do it before Christmas - people'll be getting excited, Filch will be having a fit cause he's got to organize the arrangements for the holidays...trust me. I know what I'm talking about.'

It had been the longest speech he'd said that morning, and it appeared to have tired him out, for he sighed and took a sip of coffee as though he'd been commentating a violent Quidditch match.

'Christmas it is, then,' said Remus decidedly.

'Hey, did you hear about Summers?' Sirius asked the group quickly, for he had spotted the _Daily Prophet _lying nearby. As the Marauders shook their heads, Sirius then explained all about the Dark Mark over George Summers' house and the fact he'd been taken out of school. They regarded this with a mixture of pity and disbelief.

'Merlin's pants, that's bloody awful,' James grimaced.

'I like George,' Remus mused sadly. 'I bet his parents are worried.'

'Anyone would be,' Sirius agreed. 'When do you think Summers'll be back?'

'Not sure,' James shrugged. 'Wonder who's replacing him...on the team, you know...'

A distraction arrived in the form of a brown owl swooping down upon Sirius's place at the table and dropping a square package there with a heavy thud.

'What's that?' James said, eyeing it rather warily while the owl hooted and flew away again.

'Brilliant!' Sirius said enthusiastically as he picked up the package. 'This must be my catalogue, I sent for this in the summer holidays...'

He tore open the paper to reveal a glossy paperback book with a picture of a magnificent red motorcycle splashed across the front.

'_Motorcycle Madness: A Guide For Hardcore Bikers_?' said Remus with interest. 'Sirius - ?'

James was grinning knowingly. He knew of his best friend's love of motorcycles, and Sirius had confided in him that it was his dream to own one when he came of age.

Sirius was riffling through the catalogue admiring all the different models. He was so fascinated that he took no note of what the others were saying for a while.

'...came by owl - Sirius, that's a Muggle book - how did it get here?'

Sirius looked up at Remus's puzzled face.

'It probably got delivered by Muggle post to home,' Sirius said with a snigger, thinking of his parents' distaste when the package arrived through the letterbox. 'They would have sent it to me. My parents, I mean.'

'I didn't know you liked motorbikes,' said Wormtail rather dimly.

'No, Wormy, he positively _hates _them,' replied James sarcastically. Then he turned to his best friend, looking almost as eager as Sirius was. 'So? When are you going to get one? Eh? Which one are you thinking of getting?'

'I'm not sure,' Sirius said uncertainly. 'Probably when I'm about seventeen, and I've left Grimmauld for good, ha, ha...'

'The one on the cover looks good,' James says enthusiastically.

'Costs a lot, though,' Sirius said with a grimace.

'Have you got the Muggle money to pay for it?'

'I'll get back to you on that one, Prongs,' laughed Sirius, though him owning a motorcycle was a dream and not a certainty, and it was partly because he had no idea how to get the Muggle money. He doubted his parents would approve enough to give him some (not that they had any - they were wealthy but would never dream of coming into contact with money used by such a low class).

'Morning, all!' came a loud, cheery voice from behind them, and Sirius turned to see a fresh-faced Linda Peakes clapping Sirius on the back. They had become somewhat friends since meeting each other properly at Quidditch practices.

'Hey, Peakes,' Sirius grinned as she sat at his other side.

'Good night last night, wasn't it?' she said conversationally, grabbing a slice of toast.

'Yeah...how come you're not hungover?' asked James, a little annoyed.

'I didn't drink too much...got some Butterbeer before some sod poured Firewhisky in it...'

Sirius laughed while James looked both sheepish and confused; he probably couldn't remember the details, but had a feeling that he had been something to do with it. However, he passed it off with a short, but groggy, laugh.

'So, James,' Linda said knowingly, 'recovered, have you?'

'Er - yeah, just about - '

'I suppose you won't remember _everything_,' Linda said, looking very pleased about something, 'but it'll come back to you.'

'What?' James said, more puzzled than ever.

Sirius acted quickly; either James was pretending he didn't know what Linda was referring to, and this was doubtful as James was drunk out of his mind at the time; or he was really clueless about the whole thing. As Linda was on the verge of revealing all, Sirius hurriedly interrupted her.

'So - er - when's our next match, then?'

Linda looked at Sirius a little suspciously, annoyed that she had been distracted. 'I'm not sure,' she said finally, thinking hard. 'February the seventh, I think. But I really don't know...you should ask Ernie.'

'No thanks,' scoffed Sirius. 'Ernie's more braindead than James right now, and that's saying something.'

**OoO**

It was not until later that evening, when Sirius had hoped that the whole thing would be forgotten, that James brought up their morning conversation with Linda. People in the Gryffindor common room kept walking past James and giving him a raise of the eyebrow, or looking as though they were suppressing laughter. If it was getting to Sirius, it was nothing to how irksome James was feeling.

'What _is _it with all these funny looks?' hissed James as they sat at a desk attempting to complete a particularly nasty Transfiguration essay on principles of Gamp's Law. 'It's like I've - I've got some arrow sticking out of my head saying, "Look At Me!" I mean, I'm used to it, but when everyone's laughing, it's a different thing entirely.'

'Mmm,' Sirius said, who could not think of a reply and was scratching away with his quill.

'Was it the party? Last night - what did I do? I don't really remember some parts of it - _Padfoot_!'

'Sorry, sorry!' Sirius said, snapping his head up from his parchment. 'Er, to tell you the truth, mate, I don't really remember.'

He hoped this was convincing enough.

'But you were alright this morning, you can't have been as drunk as me!' cried James persistently.

'I wasn't, but I definitely _was_ drunk!' Sirius said truthfully. 'So there are bound to be things I've forgotten...er...let's see...' He searched around in the slightly distorted memories left from last night - he had to provide something, or else James wouldn't let it go. '...You were hoisted in the air and then afterwards you made a sort of speech.'

'What?' said James sharply, paling.

'Yeah - something about "it's not just me, we have a great team too", something like that.'

'That's not too bad,' James said, shrugging it away without concern. 'I would have said that sober.'

'And you _did_ put Firewhisky in the Butterbeer,' added Sirius with a grin. 'Or, at least, you told me to. It was quite funny, actually. Eleanor Boot got so drunk she performed the Bat Bogey Hex on herself.'

James laughed appreciatively. 'I knew I'd done it! Merlin, that would have been good to see. Come to think of it, I remember just being with a crowd of people the whole night...what were they talking about?' He scratched his head, trying to remember.

'Probably just the match,' said Sirius uncomfortably. 'That's what the party was for, wasn't it?'

And with that he diverted the subject to the essay in hope that James would not recall anything else from that night.


	16. Fifteen: Tea & Sympathy

_A/N: Hello! I bring you chapter fifteen. This one's where Sirius and Lily have a heart-to-heart of sorts - well, Sirius explains about his family, anyway. I realise now how far we are into the story and Sirius and Lily aren't even together yet - I've counted and there's about three or four chapters to go. I probably should have made them get together earlier, shouldn't I? Oh, well, they learn a lot about each other in this chapter so it contributes largely to their relationship!  
><em>

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><p><strong>Fifteen<br>**

**Tea & Sympathy  
><strong>

The following week, Remus was absent from them for a while as it was time for him to transform again. The three Marauders, since they were now fully capable of becoming complete Animagi, had promised that they would go down to the Shrieking Shack with him.

'It was bad last month,' muttered James as they had a late dinner after one Quidditch practice - Peter was in the common room struggling with his Herbology homework. 'It was just me on my own, and Peter's not really of help except for the Willow so I was bored out of my mind.'

Sirius felt sudden guilt that he had not been there to help his friend; he had indeed contemplated resuming dog form and going out to the grounds to meet them, but James was still angrier than ever at that time and he knew the night would probably end in a vicious fight between stag and hound.

'I've been keeping notes for Moony in classes,' Sirius said rather resentfully, as if taking notes was the most uncool, nerdiest thing ever. 'It's the most complicated thing I've ever done. I keep losing track of what they're saying while I'm writing the damn thing down.'

'Use a Quick-Quotes Quill,' James suggested, wolfing down his pork chop.

'Are you kidding? They're about twelve Galleons per quill at Scrivenshaft's, and they only last about a week. I tried one for my Potions homework once, remember?...Bloody nightmare, it was so worn out that the writing was just a wiggly line.'

'Oh yeah,' said James fondly. 'You missed _Wrock Hour _on the wireless 'cause you had to rewrite it...'

'Yeah, don't remind me,' Sirius groaned.

They finished their dinner and headed back up to the common room, grateful of the comfy chairs and crackling fire that beckoned them. That night's practice had been a difficult one; rain lashed down ruthlessly upon them and they were blown off-course by winds that felt like tidal waves. Sirius had almost taken a hit on the head by a Bludger that Peakes had swung his way and James had been getting increasingly agitated as the shower of rain obscured the glinting, golden Snitch from view.

As they reached the portrait hole, someone else was coming out of it. With a jolt that made him stop in his tracks, he realised it was Lily Evans.

'Have a good night, Evans?' James said loudly as they approached.

She just stared at him as though he'd declared he hadn't washed in a month.

'I know _I_ did,' he said with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

She regarded him with stunned disbelief. Sirius did too. Did he know - ?

'I knew it. I _knew_ you wouldn't have the decency to even apologize!'

'What are you talking about, Evans?' James replied, clearly unbeknownst to what Lily meant. 'Apologize - what for?'

'For sticking your tongue down my throat the other night!' Lily said, putting emphasis on every word. She looked both appalled and mortified. 'Pretty _proud_, are you, that you finally managed to get me?'

James, for once, had nothing to retort. He simply looked at her, his expression frozen into a face of hideous shock. He, too, looked as though he felt the same as the redheaded girl standing before him.

Lily shook her head and swept away, her red hair swinging around her shoulders like a sheet of copper.

Sirius turned to James, looking at him uneasily and watching James's expression - he could not predict the outcome.

'Wh - what - did - ?' James had adopted the voice of a robot.

'Er, you sort of...sort of kissed her,' Sirius explained, cringing. 'At the party. You were _really_ drunk, and you kissed her, and she left.'

James was still in robot-mode. 'But - I kissed - that doesn't - I didn't - '

'Sorry you had to find out like that,' Sirius said rather gingerly, as he had no idea what James was going to say or do. 'I didn't think you'd remember, honestly - I didn't think she'd tell you like - '

'You knew?' James said croakily.

'Everyone did,' Sirius said at once, as though this justified it.

'The looks,' James nodded, his eyes unfocused. 'Everyone looking at me.'

'Yeah.'

James paced up and down, taking deep breaths, covering his face with his hands and sighing. It looked rather like he was standing outside of a hospital room while the mother of his child was giving birth.

'M-e-r-l-i-n,' James whispered, stretching the word into one multi-syllabled sigh. 'Oh God. I - wait - what - you're sure I kissed her?'

'I saw it, mate,' Sirius said rather uncomfortably. Then, feeling as though he should add some light-hearted humour to the situation, he added, 'Hey, mate, you pulled her, after all!'

James did not laugh. 'Padfoot!' he said, almost pleading. 'I can't believe - _Evans_ though - Evans - '

'I thought - ' Sirius began.

'I know!' James said hurriedly. 'I know, and I still do, you know, I_ like_ her, it hasn't changed, but, I _kissed_ her. What even - Merlin alive.'

'Look, just don't think about it too much,' Sirius advised him, though if he was in James's position he had to admit it would be an extremely hard feat. 'Everyone's forgotten about it now - '

'Not her!' interjected James miserably.

' - there's no point bringing it back up again, just go back to the common room, come on.'

'How can I even talk to her now?' asked James pathetically, as, supported by Sirius, he climbed through the portrait hole.

'You'll manage,' replied Sirius bracingly. 'Come on, Prongs, forget about it! You were drunk, that's all, doesn't mean you would have done it sober, and hey, you've probably given her the best kiss of her life - _first _kiss, probably - '

'Alright!' shrieked James. 'Just, let's shut up. And don't mention anything to Peter, he'll probably let the whole school know.'

Sirius rather wanted to say that the whole school most likely _did_ know, but decided against it, and they met Peter sitting at a table frustratedly loading his quill.

'Hi!' he said, beaming at the sight of them. 'Listen, I've been doing this for ages, I can't think what the eight properties of Abyssian Shrivelfigs are, can you help -?'

'Later, Wormy,' Sirius told him firmly. 'We've just had Quidditch practice, we don't want to do work.'

'Oh - okay,' Peter shrugged, stowing away his things. 'Good practice?'

'It was alright,' Sirius said carelessly. 'Wind was being a bugger though. Abbott nearly fell into one of the hoops.'

While Peter chortled, James simply sat staring into silence. It wasn't until a few minutes later that he finally spoke, though he was not in anguish as before, but brisk and sharp. 'I'm going to bed,' he said shortly, and swept up out of his chair to the boys' dormitories.

'Is he okay?' asked Peter anxiously.

'He'll be fine,' Sirius replied.

'It's only eight o'clock - '

'He'll be _fine_.'

Annoyed slightly by Peter's fretting, he got up too and walked out of the portrait hole. Dawdling down the stairs, he decided to go to the Entrance Hall and leave the castle for a walk. It was alright, surely, to be out at this time - Mr McLudus would probably be storing away the Quidditch balls in the shed. It wasn't until he reached the Hall, however, so absorbed in his thoughts of a pleasant walk as he was, that he remembered it was pouring buckets of icy rain. Dejected, he turned back up the marble staircase - but was distracted by two people outside the Great Hall double doors.

One, so easily recognizable by her flowing red hair, was Lily Evans. The other was Adam Wood.

Intruiged, Sirius dwindled down the marble staircase with his hands in his pockets and silently approached them.

'I've seen people coming out, it _can't _be finished - '

'It is!' Wood was saying. 'I was one of the last ones to eat dinner. Why didn't you just come down earlier if you didn't want to miss it?'

'Oh it was - homework, and patrols and everything, I needed to finish something off - come _on_, I'm starving.'

'I can't help you,' shrugged Wood with his shoulder leant against the door.

'Why were _you_ late for dinner, anyway?' Lily snapped.

Wood paused. He now looked a little shamefaced. 'Oh...well, er, I watched Quidditch practice for a while, and...I wanted to ask Abbott if I could be Beater again, but - '

Sirius cleared his throat loudly. Both of them jumped.

'_But_,' Sirius finished, 'the best man won, and some people have to accept that.' He nudged Wood's shoulder gently. 'No hard feelings, mate.'

Wood looked at Sirius most disgruntledly, and stalked off, uttering '_No hard feelings, mate_' in a mocking voice under his breath. Sirius chortled.

'You really know how to make an entrance, don't you?' she said waspishly.

Sirius bowed. 'So I've heard.'

'Come to apologize on behalf of Potter, have you?'

'No, actually, though I bet you hoped I was,' he said, laughing. 'He's in a state of shock. I reckon he'll need a few days to recover.'

Lily just rolled her eyes.

'Now, am I right in thinking you missed dinner?'

'_Yes_,' she said rather resentfully, 'by about a second, and - '

'No problem. Come on.'

'What? Black, where are you going?'

But Sirius just waved her onwards, whistling to himself. She hurried to keep up with him, looking annoyed with herself for following him but at the same time desperate to know where he was going. He led her down tight spiral staircases, wide empty corridors and draughty chambers, and eventually they came to the basement and the painting of the bowl of fruit.

'Now tickle that pear,' Sirius instructed. 'Go on.'

She gave him a look as though he was out of his mind.

'Just do it, Evans,' he groaned.

Cautiously, thinking as though he was playing a trick on her, Lily scratched the canvas of the green pear, which giggled madly and instantly moulded into a door handle. She jumped backwards, apprehensive.

'Go _on_, it won't bite,' said Sirius with a hint of sarcasm.

She took the handle and swung the painting.

The sight of the kitchens, lit by flaming torches on the walls, met both their eyes. This was a sight all too common for Sirius, but he sneaked a side-long glance at Lily and saw that she was looking both impressed and shocked. Evidently, she had never been here before - not that he expected to, with her primness and general respect for the rules.

The usual huddle of house-elves, all wearing a tea towel bearing the Hogwarts crest, rushed up to meet them.

'Sirius Black, sir! And - and miss - '

'Evans,' Sirius told Sneazle with a nod.

'Sirs and miss, such a pleasure to be seeing you! What is you wanting, sirs and miss - we has stew and soup from dinner - '

'This one's hungry,' Sirius said, indicating Lily with a jerk of his thumb. 'She'd just like some dinner, and I think I'll take a cream cake.'

'Right away, Sirius Black!' Sneazle squeaked eagerly, and he, together with the other obedient house-elves, pattered away to prepare the food.

Sirius indicated to Lily to take a seat at one of the long, empty tables. She did so slightly cautiously.

'What d'you think?' he asked her.

'This is where you nick food from for all the parties, isn't it?' Lily said, cottoning on. Her fingers drummed a pattern on the table. 'I didn't know there were house-elves here...'

'Yep,' Sirius said shortly. 'Just so you know, I've literally broken a Marauder's honour showing you this place, so think yourself lucky.'

She rolled her magnificent almond-shaped eyes. 'It's not exactly _hard_,' she sighed loftily.

'Really? Discovered it on your Prefect duties, have you? Know all the house-elves by name?'

'I could have found it by myself, if I'd wanted to,' she said, a touch of self-pride distinct in her voice.

'Yeah, yeah...too busy begging Wood for help, weren't you?'

'I wasn't _begging_!' she said indignantly. 'He just so happened to be the last one coming out of dinner and I needed to go in there, and he told me no, dinner had finished...'

Sirius just gave her a sceptical look.

'I'm not obsessed with him like most girls are, anyway,' Lily carried on, looking sullen. 'To be honest, I'm not sure what everyone sees in him. Did you hear him, he's so desperate to be Beater again - !'

'You think I'm way better for the job, don't you?' Sirius grinned. 'Yeah, I completely agree - my co-ordination at the match was just - '

Lily interrupted his self-reflection with a loud snort.

'Why did _you_ wave at him, anyway, if you don't like him? Trials, remember?' Sirius questioned instantly, turning the conversation back to her. Lily just grinned rather sheepishly, and perhaps she regarded her plate of food that the house-elves set in front of her at that moment with more enthusiasm than she would have done, because it gave her an excuse not to reply.

'Oh, wow, I _just _fancied some lasagne as well...thanks, er - '

'Sneazle, miss!' he squeaked, before humming a tune to himself as he set Sirius's plate of cream cakes before him, along with a tray set with tea for two.

'Thanks, Sneazle,' Sirius said as he poured himself a tea and started on a chocolate eclair.

'How come they're so eager to give food away?' Lily asked between mouthfuls of pasta.

'Born to serve, aren't they?' replied Sirius thickly. 'It's in their nature...although I'm not sure you could say the same for mine, he's bloody awful.'

Lily stared at him in disbelief with her fork poised inches from her mouth. 'You have a _house-elf_?' she said, in a tone of disbelief mingled with sarcasm.

'Yeah,' shrugged Sirius, wiping the cream from his mouth. 'S'called Kreacher...ugly old bat he is, too. I can't wait 'till my father beheads him...'

He thought perhaps afterwards that he had said the wrong thing; Lily's face adopted a shocked, sickened expression, and he thought she would come out with a disgusted outburst. However, she seemed to overlook it, and went back to her lasagne, either because she didn't want to know or because she was too hungry to storm out and leave her meal.

After a while, when the platter of cakes was almost gone, Lily spoke.

'I didn't know you had a house-elf,' she said thoughtfully.

Sirius couldn't reply - his mouth was full of jam doughnut.

'I mean, I knew you were rich - I mean, well-off, you know - but I just didn't think that - '

'Oh yes, I have house-elves attending my every need back at the Black residence,' Sirius said jokingly. Then, feeling as though she might actually take him seriously, he explained, 'I'm a Black. Pureblood prejudice and fanciness and all that - it goes with the territory.' He laughed rather harshly. 'We have a tradition of beheading our house-elves and putting them on the wall, you know,' he told her. 'But - don't worry, they all think it's the house-elf's highest honour,' he added hurriedly at the sickened look Lily gave him. 'Just in case you thought my father was some sort of maniac who likes to run around with an axe chopping the heads off elves. Well, in a way, he _is_ a maniac - no - more of a sodding idiot - '

'I read about your ancestry, you know,' Lily said in rather a small voice. She was evidently trying to sound casual, but the embarassment spilled over the conversational tone.

Sirius's jaw dropped. '_What_?' he couldn't suppress a smirk.

'Well, I - _Nature's Nobility _is a popular book, and it just so happened that the Black family were mentioned - don't laugh! There's loads of other families in there too, not just yours - '

'You make it sound like I actually _care _about them,' he snorted. 'What was that book you said?'

'It's called _Nature's Nobility: A Wizarding Genealogy_. I was just looking up on the, er, wizarding families - '

'We've got that at home,' Sirius mused. 'Honestly, Evans, what d'you want to go reading that for? It's all rubbish - bloodline doesn't matter, you know, no matter how much you think _I'm_ bothered about it. I know I'm a Black, but I couldn't sodding care less whether you're pureblood or not.' He was doing it again; raving about how much _he_ wasn't prejudiced like the rest of his snooty-nosed family were, and he knew Lily hadn't implied he was, but he could not help it.

'Thank God I'm Muggle-born, then,' Lily said dryly.

Sirius stopped for a few moments; catching his breath and wishing he hadn't spoken. Of course she didn't care about purebloods or half-bloods or people with Muggle parentage - she was Muggle-born herself.

'Sorry,' Sirius began awkwardly.

'What for?'

'I know you don't think I'm - like _them_, but - everyone else seems to, and - I was taking it out on you - I feel like I have to prove myself all the time - my family; I _hate_ them. I do.' He stared at the ground, anger pulsing through him.

Lily poured herself a cup of tea as though she couldn't think what to do or say. Then she said, 'Surely there must be _someone_ you like?'

'My cousin, Eda,' Sirius said with a small smile. 'She's great. She's got some nerve - went and got engaged to a Muggle-born. My mother wasn't too pleased. They don't speak any more, obviously.'

'Andromeda,' Lily said, nodding. 'Her Muggle relations weren't mentioned in the book, because it was written before it happened, but Mary's aunt knows her.'

Sirius nodded. 'Yeah, well. I still speak to her sometimes - not at home. She's easily my favourite cousin. Bella's bloody demented and Cissy's such a _snob _- just like my mother.'

Lily was peering at him with her blazing green eyes. Sirius shook his head - why he was pouring out opinions on his family to Lily Evans, he did not know. He had half a mind to leave before he started revealing all the other secrets the family worked so hard to protect - Bella killing several oblivious Muggles in "celebration" of graduating Hogwarts, for instance...Uncle Alphard's love for the Muggle girl who worked behind the counter at the post office...

'Well, I've no need to ask about your brother,' said Lily coldly. 'He's the reason I spent all those weeks in the hospital wing.'

Sirius wanted to disagree; he felt strongly that it was his own fault, not his brother's, but he noticed for the first time that Lily had finished dinner, and suddenly hastened to leave her company.

'Finished, Evans? Here, have that last cream cake. I need to go and see if James hasn't passed out yet.'


	17. Sixteen: Yuletide Truths

_A/N: Hey hey! Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far and here's the next chapter, hope you like, whoever or wherever you are. Thanks._

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><p><strong>Sixteen<strong>_  
><em>

**Yuletide Truths  
><strong>

_Sirius Black_

_You are invited to attend the wedding of_

_Andromeda Black and Theodore Arnold Tonks_

_Beginning at 1:30pm on Wednesday, 17th April at St. Smythwick's Hall of Marriage in Wizardry, Hemel Hempstead_

_Apparition Point Suttdown Road  
>Floo Network-Enabled<br>We regret to inform you that St. Smythwick's no longer allows Portkeys as a form of transport, as they may be intercepted or tampered with_

_We await your owl by no later than February and we hope to see you there._

James looked over Sirius's shoulder and read the invitation, too. It was printed on off-white card with a scarlet-and-pink border, embellished with a star-spangled wand at each corner.

'Your cousin's getting married?' he said with interest.

'She's been engaged to the man for ages, Prongs,' Sirius said, rolling his eyes. James knew of Sirius's relatives, rare nice ones included, and understood the hatred he had for most of them, but more often that not he forgot the little details. Sirius was rather surprised, in fact - James had never met Andromeda in person, but always seemed to like the sound of her - however, he always thought that James adopted the same carelessness Sirus assosciated with his family in order to maintain the cool, joky attitude, and that was why he overlooked some things sometimes. It wasn't because he didn't care - just because he wanted to look like he didn't.

'I can't believe she's marrying him, finally!' Sirius continued, more to himself than his friends. He was happy for her, of course. He'd never judged her like his parents did. He was even shocked that she'd considered _him_ to be best man! But at the same time he didn't really mind - he didn't know Ted, Andromeda's fiance, that well anyway.

He laughed to himself, remembering that Andromeda had told him once that she'd curse his parents if they wouldn't let him go to her wedding: countless times, they had considered it in whispered conversation at the dinner table of Grimmauld Place. That was when she had announced to the family that she'd got engaged to a Muggle-born...why she'd told his parents, Sirius could not fathom...he remembered the night having a rather interesting end...several glass vases blasted to smithereens on the dining room floor and a burn on the wallpaper marking precisely the spot whereupon Andromeda had swiftly Disapparated out of sight.

'Tell them congratulations from me,' Lupin smiled, as Sirius put down the letter and resumed eating his cornflakes.

'And me,' said James.

'And me,' repeated Peter with his mouth full of bacon.

Feeling that they were saying it to mimic Remus's politeness rather than out of their own thoughtfulness, Sirius made a mental note to add his friends' congratulatory wishes to his reply as he folded up his letter. He then preceded to tell his friends that he'd been talking about his cousin the previous week - but then he remembered it was Lily he'd conversed with about that, and not the Marauders, and so he stopped himself. The pang of guilt that always followed thinking of Lily flooded through him, but he ignored it.

It was the last day of term today, and Christmas was drawing excitedly ever closer. Sirius didn't particularly enjoy the day itself, for his parents never really bothered to send any satisfactory presents (though his friends certainly did), but however, the lesson-free days and festive atmosphere itself was extremely appealing to anybody. They finished their breakfast in a slightly cheerier mood, despite Care of Magical Creatures in the bitter, frosty air which awaited them.

Lily was partnered up with James, not out of choice, but because Professor Kettleburn had put them together. Sirius, who was partnered with Remus, wasted no time in sharing sniggers with him, as James struggled to keep up the chain of insults he usually fired at her. He had finally gotten over the shock of realising his drunk antics, but the Marauders knew it played on his mind whenever she was around. Sirius noticed that she kept a stony face as they chopped an assortment of food to give to the winged horse that was tethered to a tree on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest.

Snape, who kept shooting revolted looks at his partner, Peter, was looking rather more bitter and malicious as he normally did, Sirius noticed. He did not think that he and Lily had talked since the incident of the flowers, and maybe that was the reason why he seemed agitated. But it was more than that, Sirius thought. He looked ill...

The bell rang after the lesson was over, and, many students aching to go up to Transfiguration and leave the icy air, the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs traipsed back up to the castle. Sirius met Elizabeth Jones, their fellow fifth-year who played Seeker for the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, as they swarmed into the Entrance Hall. Sirius, who had not spoken to any Hufflepuff about Summers in the week that followed the _Prophet _article, was keen to know more.

'Hey, Jones,' he said, rushing to catch up with her.

She smiled at him, struggling to get her Transfiguration textbook out of her bag.

'What happened with Summers the other week - have you heard from him?'

Her smile faltered, and she shook her head. 'Nothing,' she said, as they climbed the spiral staircase to Transfiguration, their second shared class of the morning. 'We were quite good friends, you know...oh well.' She shrugged sadly.

'Well, let me know if you hear anything,' Sirius said, feeling it was best not to press it, and joined the Marauders as they lined up outside Professor McGonagall's classroom.

'What d'you want to talk to her for?' James said, his brow furrowed.

'I asked about Summers,' Sirius explained. 'But she hasn't heard anything...'

'So she doesn't know who's replaced him on the team?' James asked hopefully.

Sirius shook his head. Remus gave James a disapproving look.

'What?' James asked indignantly. 'If they get a new Captain, it could seriously damage our chances for the Cup!'

**OoO**

The first snowfall dwindled past the high window in the Gryffindor common room that evening. The Marauders had discarded their bags and textbooks in the dormitory in anticipation of a relaxed and well-earned Christmas (Sirius still had half of his Divination star chart to finish, but owing to the fact that he despised Divination more than any other subject, he told himself he would complete it later on in the holidays).

James had taken out his Sneakoscope and set it on the table; it was indeed magnificent. Made of tiny individual chips, the glass was coloured thousands of different shades which blurred into one when James spun it.

'Should have settled by morning,' Peter observed, watching the flakes fall all the more rapidly onto the black scenery outside.

'I hope it doesn't get too deep,' James said. 'We might not be able to go to Hogsmeade then.'

'I need to stock up on Floating Water Balloons for the Christmas prank,' Sirius mused.

At that moment, Hollie Scutcliffe came bounding over to them, flushed and looking as though she was very pleased about something.

'James, James, Summers is back!' she cried.

James sat upright in his chair. 'What?'

'Yeah - he's just arrived - he convinced his parents to let him stay here for Christmas - '

'Where is he?' James asked at once.

'Entrance Hall!' she said breathlessly. 'Bertha Jorkins just told - '

But James had sprang up from his chair and pushed past Hollie, who looked disappointed; she had evidently expected James to show more gratitude for her dose of gossip. She turned and followed him all the same, as did Remus and Peter.

'Sirius?'

'Coming, Moony,' mumbled Sirius, and hurriedly started packing up his quill, ink and parchment - he was about to write a reply to his cousin.

To his immense surprise, however, after the Marauders had gone and the common room was empty except for David Scott asleep by the fire, it was someone else who sat in James's seat.

'Black.'

Sirius looked up, and was so alarmed to see her that he dropped his open inkpot and sticky, black ink spewed out all over the floor.

'Evans - ! Bugger - _Scourgify - _what - '

He siphoned the ink of the floor with his wand and picked up the little glass pot from which it had spilled; peering disappointedly into his now near-empty bottle, he screwed the lid on with some force and stuffed it into his bag.

'What do you want?'

She merely looked at him haughtily; it was as though she had been forced to sit by him instead of at her will. 'I thought Remus would be with you. Do you know where he is? It's time for patrols and he's not outside the Prefects' bathroom where we usually meet - '

'Ahhh, that bathroom. And those _taps_! My favourite is the one where it shoots out giant bubbles. What's yours?' asked Sirius, his eyes twinkling, who had sneaked into the bathroom with the Marauders at night several times in order to try and flood the magnificent marble swimming pool (it never worked - Remus told them it was Unfloodable).

She gave him a look of great distaste. 'D'you know where Remus is?' she repeated.

'Try the Entrance Hall,' Sirius told her, wiping his hands in order to get rid of the swipes of ink on them.

She still sat there, looking as though she was trying to refrain from rolling her eyes. She made a small noise of impatience.

'Don't blame _him_, Evans, he hasn't done anything wrong!' Sirius said sharply.

'He's never on time for anything because he's always with you three!' Lily retorted. 'And I'm sick of it - he's always skiving, too, he's not setting a good example if you ask me - '

'You don't know what you're on about,' Sirius said flatly, shaking his head. 'You know where he is, why don't you just go down there and get him?'

'Fine!' she said angrily, standing up. 'I will! Thanks for the help!'

'Oh, it's fine, Evans!' Sirius snapped. He knew he ought to be going too, but he could not bring himself to follow her, and so slumped backwards in his chair, flinging a Cauldron Cake at a painting in his anger.

The Sneakoscope was still flashing and spinning.

**OoO**

The run-up to Christmas passed without event. Snow had begun to fall thickly upon the grounds almost daily, transforming the scenery into massive mounds of crisp, sparkling white. The Whomping Willow looked slightly less sinister dusted with powdery snow upon the gnarled branches, and inside the castle, more and more fires sprang up and crackled merrily without ever burning out. Twelve gigantic Christmas trees stood proudly in the Great Hall peppered with unmelting snow on their fir branches, and decorated lavishly with tweeting robins, chiming golden bells and self-twisting red ribbons. Fairy lights had been strung around various paintings, mistletoe sprang up randomly in corridors, and everlasting icicles were attatched to the banisters of the marble staircase in the Entrance Hall. Sirius, who thoroughly enjoyed the festive atmosphere, had to admit that it did have its downsides (he was constantly having to take secret passageways due to the fact that girls kept wandering pointedly underneath mistletoe when he was around and waylaid him in the corridors).

A few days before Christmas Eve, Sirius was sat most unwillingly in the library, finishing his Divination star chart as he pored over _Moons, Mysteries and Curious Constellations. _He really didn't want to be doing homework at this time in the holidays, but Remus had advised him that it was best to get it out of the way, and as the other three had already finished theirs, they had gladly gone outside for a snowball fight while Sirius was left working. He was slightly annoyed that they had chosen to leave him like this, but then again, he doubted whether even his friends could help him - Divination was the most confusing, stupid, pointless subject in the magical world, in his opinion.

'_Identify which planet, in conjunction with Planet D, will undoubtedly mean times of conflict for those born under the influence of Saturn..._how the hell should I know this? Right, Planet D, that's got to be Mercury - no, wait - is that Venus? Bloody hell - '

But then the sound of someone speaking made him stop right in his tracks. It was the snide, yet presently pleading, voice of someone he knew only too well. And the other voice - harsh, sarcastic - a tone she used with both Sirius and James...Lily Evans.

As quietly as he could, Sirius got up from his table, cluttered with books, maps and quills, and walked over to the source of the whispered conversation. Peering behind a bookcase, and careful not to be spotted, he watched Lily and Snape as they were engaged in what seemed to be an argument. Lily was leaning against a bookcase, facing Sirius, although her view of him was blocked by Snape, who had his back to Sirius and was shaking his head.

'No, no, I _promise_, Lily, it wasn't me - '

'You're sure?' she asked sceptically.

'I'm sure,' Snape nodded. 'I would _never_ do that - '

'Well then, why were the flowers infected?' Lily hissed at once.

Sirius watched, a feeling of hatred bubbling in his chest - Snape was trying to deny putting deadly potion on the flowers he sent - the little _slimeball_...

'I _told_ you, it was Evan!' Snape said as though he had explained this many times. 'It was Evan - Evan and Falcus - I had no idea they were doing it - I don't even know how they found out - '

Snape was referring to Evan Rosier and Falcus Wilkes, just two of the malicious Slytherin gang whom Snape hung around with. Sirius's hatred increased - of course he would try and pin it on somebody else, Sirius _saw_ Snape with his own eyes...

'So you didn't tell them you were sending flowers to me?' Lily asked, her eyes narrowing.

'Of - of course I didn't!' Snape insisted. 'It makes sense, Lily, if you think about it - '

'Because all your Slytherin friends hate me? Yeah, you can say it, Sev. I already know.'

'No, I didn't mean it like - why would I send a note to you if I was the one putting the potion on the flowers? I wouldn't want to get myself caught, would I, the only reason I was sending the flowers at night was because I was afraid of what you would say if I turned up in person - '

'So you should've been!' Lily retorted. 'Well, now I know your friends want to kill me, I can sleep safe in my bed, can't I?'

Snape was silent. Then he said, rather hurt, 'Don't say that, Lily. Please - I don't think - they don't want you _dead_ - '

'I'm Muggle-born, aren't I?' Lily said indignantly. 'That should be a good enough reason. Besides, if they didn't want me dead, what _did_ they want? That's what that potion does, you know - it sends you off into a sleep so that you never wake up - '

'_Don't_!' pleaded Snape.

'Do you want to be friends?' Lily asked sharply.

'Yes, of course I do - '

'Are you still going to hang around with _them_? If what you say is true? They were the ones to put it on the flowers, not you? You're still going to hang around with them after they did that?'

There was a very awkward silence. Then Snape said, rather quietly, 'No.'

'Do you _promise_ you never knew they were putting that potion on the flowers?' Lily said clearly.

'I promise.'

Lily seemed to analyse him for a moment, sweeping her bright green eyes across his face, hidden by those sallow curtains, and then she nodded, and she turned and walked away.

Sirius retreated to his table, almost numb with disbelief...how could she have forgiven him so easily...how could she have believed his empty, pathetic words pleading for forgiveness...how had she looked into those cold black eyes and seen any truth in them?

He wondered whether he should go back, find Snape probably smug that Lily had at last forgiven him, and confronted him, maybe used a violent curse on him. But telling him meant revealing the secrets of the Marauder's Map, and the thought of _Snape_ knowing something like that was the last thing he wanted. He was trembling with anger, and he even felt slightly annoyed at Lily too, for trusting him so easily after all he had done...after he'd simply thrown her aside, because his friends disapproved, because of her birth...prejudice, that's what it was, prejudice and superiorism and discrimination and blood status, what did it matter? Why was it all so important?

He was dizzy with thoughts and feelings swirling around in his brain, so much so that he could not concentrate on his Divination work. Scribbling down some rubbish and hoping it would justify for an OWL A grade (Professor Trelawney, like most teachers, now graded their work to OWL standard), he packed up his things and left the library, hoping that throwing some snowballs would at least vent the anger caged inside of him.

**OoO**

It was Christmas Eve, and the excitement in the air was palpable, not least because of the day that followed, but for the Marauders, it was because it was the night of their pranking extravaganza. They had practiced the night before and everything had gone to plan; now, all that was left to do was set everything off.

At dinnertime, whilst everyone was eating happily in the festive Great Hall, the Marauders left early and hurried into the gratefully empty Entrance Hall. James had the Cloak stuffed under his robes; Sirius's pockets were drooping with bags of Dungbombs, Exploding Water Balloons and Goldive's Christmas Crackers (not the turkey-dinnerl kind, but tiny spheres which expanded in size and literally cracked to spew sparkles and Christmas bells everywhere).

Peter stood guard at the doors to the Great Hall, whilst Remus guarded the front doors. Sirius started emptying out his practical joke supplies, while James unloaded an armful of Dr Filibuster's Fabulous No-Heat, Wet Start Fireworks from his pocket (he had fitted them all in using an Undetectable Extension Charm).

'_Accio Broomsticks_!' James shouted. Instantly, four broomsticks zoomed from the broom cupboard nearby and into James's arms. He threw three of them to the others.

'Now we get Filch,' James murmured, grinning mischieviously. He raised his wand, said clearly, '_Levicorpus_', and with another flick, one of the fireworks levitated up into the air and zoomed to the top of the marble staircase.

'_Aguamenti_!' Sirius commanded, and, with careful aim, shot a spray of water at the end of the firework. Instantaneously, the firework jumped, as though hit by a bullet, and fizzed and crackled excitedly. With a whoosh, the firework shot along a corridor, and now they had to wait for it to explode, and no doubt alert the miserable caretaker and his cat.

After a few seconds, there was a muffled _bang_, and a painful meow which sounded as though it had come from Mrs. Norris. Not less than a second later, they heard the unmistakeable war cry of Filch coming to see the source of the firework. Hurriedly, James threw another firework to Peter, who set it alight with water from his wand and shoved it quickly into the depths of the Great Hall. They had only seconds.

'Let the mischief begin,' James whispered with a crooked smile, mounting his broom.


	18. Seventeen: Mischief Managed

_A/N: Hey everyone, sorry about the long wait between chapters. I'd like to thank IWLTxo, jayley, Briallen Hunter, R3HAB, Reifa96lockheart, becca, celtbhoy and gottaloveJamesPotter for all reviewing my story so far. This chapter, and the next, are the Christmassy chapters. Festive fun all round! Maybe I should have posted them at Christmas :( Anyway, voila. Until next time._

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><p><strong>Seventeen<strong>

**Mischief Managed  
><strong>

It was chaos. Absolute chaos. Their most daring, and also successful, prank yet. And Sirius loved every minute of it.

The Marauders encircled the ceiling of the Entrance Hall, James covered in the Invisibility Cloak and Sirius, Remus and Peter wearing Disillusionment Charms. Their broomsticks could not be concealed, but they were hardly seen under the extensive cloud of dust, purple smoke and shimmering haze and sparkle of the fireworks. Sirius lobbed Dungbombs, Christmas Crackers and as many fireworks as he could light down onto the watching crowd, who were running around the Hall trying to discover the source of all the commotion. Sirius could make out the pointed hat of Professor McGonagall, no doubt trying to organise the students, who were ducking and trying to avoid Dungbombs and showers of cold water from the Exploding Water Balloons. Shouts and yelps rent the air, along with the whizzes and bangs of the fireworks and thuds of the Dungbombs, and prior to the hectic madness now exploding in front of them, they had emptied Mr. Ghoul's Slippery Secretion on the marble staircase, so that Filch and countless students kept slipping and sliding around as though the floor beneath them was ice.

Enjoying the view from his lofty position, Sirius aimed some more Christmas Crackers down to the confused crowd, which sent red and green sparkles fluttering everywhere and bells chimed to the tunes of Christmas carols, adding to the din. Some people were cheering; Sirius could make out the exuberant roar of Abbott and the whoops from Linda Peakes and Eleanor Boot as though they had just won a Quidditch match. Several times McGonagall shouted, 'Settle down, everyone!' or 'Please! Return to your dormitories!' but no-one would listen; the raucous cheers continued, and screams and shouts and splutters drowned her voice.

Even the ghosts had joined in now. Undeterred by the water and fireworks, as it could not harm them, they swooped among the crowd, gliding and slithering between people to make sense of the anarchy; it was impossible for Sirius to make them out exactly, but he thought he saw the Fat Friar laughing to himself as water balloons rained down upon him and soared straight through his shadowy body, and Peeves was cackling and screeching for all he was worth, relishing in the havoc and contributing by pelting chicken drumsticks at terrified first-years who were buffeted by excited people on all sides.

A broomstick to the left of Sirius suddenly ducked down; Sirius knew what was happening, and followed; this was undoubtedly James trying his hand at how far he could reach the gaggle of students without being caught. He swept down and expertly grabbed McGonagall's hat with his unnerving skill of a Seeker; the hat, supported by James's invisible arm, dangled in mid-air for a moment, and Sirius could hear him laughing manically even through the surprised yell that McGonagall gave. He dropped the hat back on her head and swooped around, flying back up again, and Sirius, not wanting to be pulled back down to the ground, rocketed upwards as fast as he could, avoiding the path of luminous fireworks, gold streamers and bright yellow balloons which were full to bursting with water. He saw blurred faces of surprise and shock to see the lone broomstick flying apparently with no-one on it, but Sirius took no notice, and he joined the others who had not yet ran out of supplies.

He could hear Remus muttering '_Engorgio!_' to one of the fireworks, and he did the same, and then hit it with a blast of water and sent it cartwheeling and tumbling back down to the students. The air was once again thick with both smoke and the voices of the onlookers, and Sirius gloried in it; he had missed this -

'NOW!' roared James to his right; he looked down and saw the long white beard and blue hat of Albus Dumbledore coming down the marble staircase; now was the time to act, the time to finish it off.

All four raised their wands; next moment, a message had appeared in the air before them, the letters mirrored from their position but reading a message to the whole Hall below. Glittering orange lettering, large and clear so it could not be missed, read, '_HAPPY CHRISTMAS!'_ distinctly amid the dense smoke and steam.

Nearly all were pointing at it, jumping up and down, but the Marauders took no notice; the moment Dumbledore was on the scene was the moment to leave. The four of them swooped low, just over the heads of the crowd, and Sirius could clearly hear 'It's the Marauders, it's the Marauders!' or 'James! JAMES! It's James!' all from the exuberant Gryffindors huddled below them. Sirius kept low to his broomstick, ignoring the hands that brushed past him, trying to touch him, and concentrated with all his might on getting past the marble staircase. Dumbledore's expression was unreadable as he passed. He was still stood at the top of the staircase, and he did not attempt to stop the broomsticks as they whistled through the dusty air and swerved for the corridor ahead. Sirius heard James shout incoherently, and the double doors blasted open, and the four of them shot through and, before they could stop themselves, before they could brake, a cold stone wall appeared in front of them and they hurled headfirst into it.

Not expecting this to happen, Sirius was painfully jolted off his broomstick as he hit the stone and sprawled on the ground in a heap, his limbs tangled with James's and Remus's elbow stuck in his ear. It took a few moments for them to come to themselves.

'Why - the - OW - _bloody hell _didn't we think of the wall?' Sirius moaned weakly, as he sat up, rubbing his head. He looked down at his body and saw that the Disillusionment Charm had worn off - and so had the others'.

James almost looked comical, with his glasses angled halfway across his face and only his head and torso visible, as the Cloak had slipped off when he hit the wall. He appeared too shellshocked to speak.

'Wuzzgoinon?' Peter asked dimly, his voice muffled. 'Er - Remud - your fud's im by moud - '

There was a moment of scuffle where Remus extracted himself from the wriggling pile of limbs.

'We'd better get out of here before Dumbledore finds us,' Remus panted.

Slowly, the four of them struggled to their feet and hurried down the empty corridor at a sort of hobble-run. They could still hear the screams and bangs from the Entrance Hall behind them, but they did not look back; James threw open a small door to the left of them which opened up to a poky cupboard full of cleaning supplies and tarnished paintings. In a rush, the Marauders dumped their brooms in it and continued up the corridor. Sirius very much hoped there would be no disturbances on the way to the Gryffindor common room; he did not like the thought of McGonagall cornering them because Peeves had decided to hold them up (he was probably still jeering in the Entrance Hall, but even so).

They made it back into the empty common room huffing and sweating; James shrugged off the Invisibility Cloak and flung it onto his lap as he flopped down onto the sofa. He was exhausted, but sporting a huge grin.

'That was our best one yet!' he exclaimed.

'You're telling me!' Peter said, who was still breathless.

'When the balloons hit that first-year - he nearly cried- '

'When I dropped those Dungbombs on Filch's head!'

'No, what about when I got McGonagall's hat!'

'That was hilarious, I nearly fell off my broom - '

'Avery, that git in Slytherin, he fell over on the staircase - '

'Did he? I didn't see - but did you see Peeves?'

'Do you think the teachers have sorted everything out yet?'

'Do they know it was us?'

'Of course they do, Pete,' James said, rolling his eyes. 'That's the best part. Now all we have to do is wait.' He sat back with his hands behind his head, looking pleased. 'Just wait. People'll be talking about this for _weeks_.'

'What d'you reckon our punishments will be?' said Remus rather anxiously.

'Detention, probably,' Sirius said with an airy wave of his hand. 'It's the worst they can do. It's not like we caused actual harm.'

'Yeah...there'll be loads of streamers and burnt-out fireworks on the floor, though,' Remus said thoughtfully.

'You can use a Vanishing Charm for that,' James said casually.

'Loads of water on the floor from the balloons - '

'Scouring Charm - '

'No, Pete, you idiot, that wouldn't work...you could steam it off the floor...'

They continued in this fashion for some time, waiting for their fellow students to return or their teachers to find them and give punishment. They considered what it could be; the worst case scenario, they decided, would be scooping out the eyeballs of any sort of creature for Potions. Half an hour later, the portrait hole opened, but instead of the gaggle of students spilling into the common room and congratulating them, as expected, in walked Professors McGongall and Dumbledore. They were both looking incredibly stern, and McGonagall's hat was still crumpled and askew, but Dumbledore seemed to bounce on the balls of his feet as he approached them. The four Marauders stood up instantly, James carefully stowing the Cloak away beneath his robes.

'I assume you know why we are here,' McGonagall began coldly. 'Since the four of you were the only ones absent from the Hall at the time of the - er - event, it is therefore quite obvious you are the culprits.'

'Well, technically, we _were_ there, Professor, we just - ' Sirius put in, who couldn't help correcting her, and although James sniggered as he said this, Remus elbowed him hard to shut him up.

'We eventually managed to sort the students after the havoc you wreaked,' McGonagall continued, her mouth nothing more than a thin line, 'and they are currently in the Great Hall. I will ask the Gryffindor common room guardian to keep you inside while we go downstairs - we do _not_ need you roaming the castle any more tonight.'

James sneaked a sidelong glance at Sirius, and it was hard not to grin; it was going to take something much more difficult than the Fat Lady to keep them in the common room.

'Though we appreciate your...festive spirit,' McGonagall said uncomfortably, and at this Dumbledore's mouth twitched, 'we will not tolerate the deliberate havoc you have caused, even at Christmas. And _especially_ in these tense times. I will collect you in ten minutes' time, and you will come down to the Entrance Hall with me and clean up the litter you have all made - without magic. Actions have consequences,' she said firmly.

The four of them were silent, though Sirius was pulsing with anger - she could clean it up ten times quicker with her wand, so why was she making them do it by hand? It would take them ages...they would probably be done by midnight...

'You will also recieve double detention on the first day of term,' Dumbledore added calmly, scanning the four of them with his piercing blue eyes, 'and fourty points have been taken from Gryffindor for your disregard for the rules. You could earn them back, however,' he said to James's furious expression, 'according to how well you do your detention. It will be arranged with Professor McGonagall here, and you will do your detentions seperately, so that you are not able to assist each other.'

The four of them looked at each other uncertainly. Sirius wasn't worried about doing his detention alone - it had happened plenty of times, although he'd had to do them with James often as well - but Peter looked thoroughly downcast; he had never had a detention by himself before.

'I am disappointed in all of you,' McGongall said, and as her eyes rested on Remus, she went on, 'but most of all, you, Mr. Lupin. You are a Prefect, and students look to you in times of need. _Not_ the best example to set to them.'

Remus's face fell. Sirius suddenly felt a pang of guilt - it was OK for Sirius and James, because they were expected to cause trouble, but Remus was almost always the last one to be in on a Marauder practical joke, and felt the most regretful afterwards. Was there truth in what Lily had said? Were they a bad influence on him?

'I will see you in ten minutes,' McGonagall said curtly, and gave them a disapproving look before sweeping around towards the portrait hole.

'And I will see you in the Great Hall tomorrow,' Dumbledore added, and followed McGonagall, his midnight-blue robes swishing behind him. It seemed as though he had forgotten something, however, because when he had neared the portrait hole he paused, but then he turned his head and said, 'And Merry Christmas.' Then he was gone.

'Could have gone worse,' James shrugged when they were alone again.

'Could have gone worse? That was torture!' Peter moaned, flopping down onto an armchair in relief. 'With Dumbledore there and everything...'

'Come on, Moony, he wasn't even angry,' James said, shaking his head. 'And we can get our points back if we earn them in our detention. Should be fine - '

'-What about cleaning the Entrance Hall?' Sirius asked with interest. 'How d'you reckon we can get round the no-magic loophole?'

'We can't,' Remus said flatly.

'Yes we can!' James said. 'We can use magic, we just won't let her see.'

'Hm, oh, yes, why didn't I think of that?' Remus replied sceptically. 'Prongs, this is McGonagall, she'll probably take our wands - '

'She can't do that!' Peter said, offended.

'She can,' Sirius interjected gloomily. 'I had to scrub all the ink off the desks in Charms once and she didn't trust me with my wand so she took it off me. Most of the ink was Everlasting - James did it too, didn't you, James?'

'Yeah,' James nodded. 'My arms nearly dropped off.'

'Why did we even do it in the first place?' muttered Remus, kicking the leg of a table. 'I'm a Prefect - can you imagine how stupid I'll look, cleaning the Entrance Hall - a _Prefect_ - '

'Come off it, Moony,' said James, a little annoyed, 'why does that even matter, anyway? You're a Prefect, yeah, OK, so are seven other people in our year - '

'That's not the point!' Remus argued. 'It's alright for _you_, isn't it Prongs? You can just do what you like because you're _James Potter_, you don't care, and there are some of us who actually _do_ care about doing well - '

'Who says I don't care?' James said angrily.

'You bloody well act like it!' Remus hissed.

There was a moment of silence in which no-one knew what to say or do. James seemed quite surprised by Remus's comment, and indeed, rather hurt. He blinked and stared at him, and Remus stared back, breathing hard, and then Remus sighed and stared at the ground.

'James, I - I didn't mean that you don't - '

'No, it's fine,' James shrugged coldly. 'We shouldn't have - it was stupid, anyway, I mean, you're right, you're a Prefect - '

'It's just me being stupid,' Remus said, half-laughing. 'I don't regret it - just watching Filch falling all about the place was bloody hilarious.'

All four shared a laugh; it was hard to stop, as if the tense moment earlier had been forgotten, and in no time at all, there was the creak of the Fat Lady's portrait which announced the arrival of McGonagall.

James sighed and trooped towards her; the others followed, dreading the Entrance Hall which awaited them, strewn with confetti, puddles of water, shrivelled fireworks and other debris which served as a souvenir to the chaos that had happened shortly before.

'Great way to spend Christmas Eve,' Peter said gloomily.

**OoO**

Sirius returned to his dormitory and flopped into bed later that evening, grateful and exhausted. The four of them had set to work, resentfully clearing away the extensive colourful litter that had been left behind, huddled in little clumps like a mountain range. McGonagall had been watching them like a hawk with their wands gripped and unyeilding in her hand, but after a few hours when not even half of the mess was swept, dusted or mopped away, McGonagall took them by immense surprise; her expression softened and she told them they could stop. In disbelief, they had collected their wands and left her to return the Entrance Hall to its original state, and returned to the common room sweaty but brimming over with glee. The whole House was, of course, waiting for them when they entered, and there was a whole half an hour in which they pestered the Marauders, or congratulated them, or simply cheered and clapped them on the back. Since it was Christmas Eve, not many of the Gryffindors were keen to turn in early, and so they all spent the rest of the night playing Exploding Snap or chatting animatedly until they were all worn out.

Christmas morning dawned, frosty and welcomed by the blanket of fresh snow dusted upon the ground. Sirius was awoken by James; he had yelled '_Wake up you arses, it's Christmas_!' so that Peter whimpered and almost fell out of bed and Arnold Peasegood leapt upright as though he had been electrocuted.

'Wazzatime?' Sirius mumbled groggily, shaking his hair out of his eyes. He spotted the pile of presents next to his bed and his mood brightened instantly; looking across at James, he saw that he was opening presents already, the eyes behind his glasses sparkling with happiness.

'_Woah_!' James cried, holding up a green box in front of him, so he could admire it properly. 'Mum and Dad got me a World Cup model!'

Sirius was too busy opening his own presents to comment. His parents had sent him a book called _Pureblood And Proper_, which he suspected was sent out of snobbiness rather than thoughtfulness, and the house-elf Kreacher had sent a squishy, shabbily-wrapped package which was actually a handful of stones and earth wrapped in the paper. James laughed hysterically at that, although he stopped instantly when Sirius pointed out _he'd_ been sent a pair of gloves from his grandmother that were pink, frilly and looked as though they fitted a six-year-old.

His presents became better once he had gotten over the unsatisfactory family ones, and he was delighted with the Zonko's Bumper Box from Peter, filled with Chocolate Wands, Melting Spoons and Self-Shattering Goblets; his very own Beater's bat from Remus, with his name etched into the handle; and both the _Enchant your own Motorcycle _handbook and jokey dog collar with the name 'Padfoot' from James. There was also a package from Mr. and Mrs. Potter, which never failed to turn up every year but was still gladly received even so - it was a box of Christmas-spiced chocolates and some thick, woolen socks. Surprisingly, he recieved a little present from Ernie Abbott, which was a photograph of the Quidditch team, smiling and laughing casually. James had one too; he guessed all the other members of the team did. He attatched it to the wall above his bed, looking at them all smiling back at him.

It wasn't until then that James yelled excitedly, causing them all to jump and stare at him sat in bed surrounded by scraps of wrapping paper. James was holding an envelope and some parchment in one hand, looking ecstatic.

'They got me tickets! For the Tornadoes game! Tornadoes vs Magpies, in the Easter holidays!'

Sirius rolled his eyes. Tutshill Tornadoes, the popular England Quidditch team, were the team which James supported and he was eager to watch them play a match. Though Sirius enjoyed Quidditch, he did not particularly support one team, and so could not feel the sense of pride or membership which James often felt with Quidditch.

'I'm going too!' Arnie spoke up from the other side of the room, also strewn with lashings of paper. 'Only - I support Magpies - '

'What?' said James incredulously. 'Are you kidding, they're bloody awful, have you seen their Beater, he can hardly play...hey, there's four tickets! We can all go - '

'All of us?' squeaked Peter breathlessly.

'Yes, Pete, all of us,' James laughed. 'So? Up for it? 20th April...'

'I'll come,' Remus smiled, in the midst of unwrapping Sirius's present: an eagle feather quill. 'I wanted one of these! Thanks, Padfoot...'

'No problem,' Sirius replied. His present to James, which was, coincidentally, a handful of Tornadoes posters and a Broomstick Servicing Kit (although his Cleansweep obviously didn't need improving), was also opened with an excitable whoop, and Peter was happy with whatever he was given as long as it was food, so his supply of confectionery from Honeydukes made him more than satisfied.

The real surprise, though, more than the tickets, was the present of Remus'. It wasn't until much later on that morning that somebody noticed it, and when they had, it seemed incredible that they could have not realised it was there. Then again, it could have been because of the loud, excitable atmosphere that the soft, chirrupy hoots went unheard.

'R-Remus!' Peter gasped suddenly, pointing to his bed, his arm shaking. 'Look-what's that - n-next to your bed - '

Remus, puzzled, looked below his bed and returned a moment later lifting a small, silver, almost spherical cage so that everyone in the dormitory could see it. Everyone paused, unable to speak, for inside the cage was a small, speckled, beige-coloured owl.

'Remus - who sent you _that_?'

'Has it been there the whole time?'

'It's so small! Is it a baby owl, or - ?'

Remus was inspecting the owl inside the cage with a mixture of surprise and amazement. 'Must be from Mum and Dad,' he grinned. 'Yeah - that would explain the Owl Treats they got me as well, I wondered...'

Sirius leapt out of bed, as did the others, to take a closer look at the owl. It was rather sweet-looking, with large glossy eyes and a plump, round body layered with ruffled white-and-beige feathers. It hooted happily, and flapped its wings so that a tiny white feather escaped and floated to the floor of the cage.

'It must be a Scops owl,' James said matter-of-factly.

'My aunt had one of them,' Arnold said, nodding. 'It bit your fingers when you got too near.'

Remus rummaged amongst his wrappings and drew out a small piece of parchment. 'They left a note with it,' he said absent-mindedly. 'It _is_ a Scops owl, James. It's a boy - they said I could name it.'

'Call it "Sirius",' Sirius yawned.

'_James_,' James corrected.

'Er...Beaky?'

'Hm, _original_, Pete,' Sirius said sardonically.

'I know, I know - "Moony"!' James cried.

The name quickly caught on and Moony the owl was left standing on the windowsill whilst the five of them hurried down to the common room to meet the other Gryffindors, who were admiring or showing off their presents. Only the Marauders really understood the personal joke behind the owl's name, whilst others simply assumed it was to do with the fact that owls were nocturnal. Either way, they all thought it was fitting, and checked back on the owl regularly to give him another Owl Treat or let him flit around the dormitory for a while.

**OoO**

The Marauders had something to eat in the Great Hall later on in the morning, where they gorged on the especially festive Christmas breakfast of holly-topped pancakes, bacon, fried eggs, omelettes and sparkling cranberry juice - which literally sparkled. Though it was late morning, the festive spirit was already in full swing, with Dumbledore sitting at the staff table adorning a hat topped with a 'Ho-ho-ho'ing Santa Claus, and the enchanted ceiling emitting flakes of dry snow upon all of their heads.

They trooped out into the grounds, together with some other Gryffindors and several Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, to enjoy a violent snowball fight in which Peter was pummelled so hard he fell flat on his face and one timid Hufflepuff first-year was nearly flattened by a snowball bigger than his own head. It wasn't until the malicious gang of Slytherins arrived though, Snape included, when the fight started to get vicious.

Snape was wearing his usual expression of deepest loathing, with his long greasy hair and hooked nose wrapped in a shabby-looking grey scarf. Mulciber and Avery, taller than anyone else there, looked down upon the others as though they were something dirty and disgusting, and both Rosier and Wilkes had started to gather the powdery snow to form a hard ball in order to attack an unfortunate first-year with.

James threw a snowball at David Scott, and then turned to Sirius.

'What are _they_ doing here?' he said sharply.

Sirius shrugged, eyeing them all with great dislike. They had begun to slither their way amongst the crowds, silently and each looking as stony as the next.

'Snowball at Snivellus, on three?' James asked eagerly, ducking at the last second as David Scott's retaliation snowball whirled past him.

Sirius nodded. He gathered a large handful of snow, packing it carefully into a hard ball and smoothing it around to make sure it was as streamlined as possible. James did the same; they straightened up and took aim.

'One - two - THREE - '

Their weapons shot through the air like bullets, arcing over several students' heads until they made contact with their target. James's hit Snape at the midriff; Sirius's hit Snape on his collar.

While James and Sirius guffawed loudly, almost doubling over at the start Snape gave when he was hit by the snow, Mulciber shot them both an ugly look and whispered something to another Slytherin friend, a burly and rather thuggish seventh-year named Antonin Dolohov.

Snape brushed the snow from his coat, spotted James and Sirius chuckling, and in an instant it happened - his wand was drawn from his pocket faster than lightning - Sirius had no time to register it - a jet of orange light shot through the muddled crowd and swarm of snowballs - Sirius yelled and pushed James away, just in time for the spell to miss them by an inch (Sirius felt the heat of it as it flew by) and hit the gnarled wood of a tree nearby, causing the wood to sizzle and blacken.

'Slimy git!' James snarled, drawing his own wand. 'What the hell's he playing at - '

But before he could retaliate, something else happened, and it was within about two seconds so that it could not be stopped. All of the Slytherins had drawn their wands, and they were all shooting spells at...well, everyone in particular. All snowballs forgotten, there was now a manic duel between students; jets of red, blue, and white light were shooting all over the place and people were shouting incoherently, or else running around, stumbling in the snow and trying to to find something to hide behind. First-years were terrified, tripping over their own trailing scarves, and some had now begun to make their way back to the castle, but most were firing spells at just about anybody who crossed their path, not sure how the whole commotion had begun but determined to be a part of it.

Sirius at first thought it was laughable, sending spells everywhere with his wand and ducking to avoid ones sent by unknown students, but it wasn't until he saw one Ravenclaw with boils all over his face, evidently from a curse he had been hit by, that he decided it was now getting dangerous. He was extremely annoyed at the Slytherins for starting it; there was no point, really, in turning to magic just to cause trouble, and he saught out Mulciber and aimed a Body-Bind Curse at him, strengthened by his anger - it hit him, and he froze, toppling comically into the snow.

Then, he saw a dark-haired, aquiline face rushing past him, and realised it was Falcus Wilkes - heard him shout to another Slytherin -

'Hal, it's her, get her, the filthy Mudblood, look - '

Turning around instantaneously, Sirius saw Lily Evans' face contort into a grimace of loathing; she was being chased by Wilkes and another Slytherin called Burke, but she had her wand ready and in a split second had hit them with a Stunning Spell. But she was not the only one - Sirius had roared '_Stupefy!_' too and as a result they were both sent flying ten feet into the air, to land in a rumpled heap upon the snowy ground.

'Black?'

'Ah Evans, how are you holding up there?' Sirius asked pleasantly, as if they had just met in the street.

'Sirius, what are you doing?' Lily shouted over the din, ducking a little to avoid spells flying past them.

'Taking a bath, what do you _think_ I'm doing?' Sirius yelled back.

'Sorry if I sound a bit surprised - it's just two people pretty much wanted to kill me back there and I had to sort it out,' Lily snapped.

'_We_ had to sort it out,' Sirius corrected her.

'Thanks for that,' Lily said, rolling her eyes.

'This isn't really the best place for a conversation,' Sirius observed, staring around at the flurry of spells and students milling around everywhere. He felt like the scene around him was on fast-forward.

'Sorry?' Lily asked; a determined sixth-year had just ran past them yelling a number of random spells to the heavens ('_Stupefy! Diffindo! Engorgio! Aguamenti! IMPEDIMENTA!')_.

'I said, this isn't really - never mind, Evans, come on!' Running away from the chaos, he motioned for Lily to follow him, and she did so, glancing behind her all the while to check they were not being chased by more angry Slytherins.


	19. Eighteen: Surprise Gifts

_A/N: Hey guys! Again, I'm really sorry about the long wait between chapters. I suppose I'm not very consistent at this updating stuff. Anyway, eighteen chapters in and finally something exciting happens between Sirius and Lily (I really like the couple name 'liriusly' by the way, Maisie!) So I hope you enjoy this festive chapter.  
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* * *

><p><strong>Eighteen<strong>

**Surprise Gifts  
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'What about your lot?' Lily panted as they reached the castle doors. They were both exhausted and the scene they had just left looked as though spells had now become tiresome, because now snowballs were being catapulted through the crisp air instead.

'I expect they're having fun,' Sirius grinned. 'James loves a good old snowball fight. Although spells were actually the main use of weaponry - '

'All because you threw a snowball at Sev!' Lily said, exasperated. Her scarf was dangling unevenly from her neck in the hurry of their recent getaway.

'He deserved it,' Sirius chuckled. Lily just gave him a dark look.

'So, I heard you're pals again,' he continued as he wrenched open the front doors to reveal a number of students shaking snow from their clothes or warming up from the chill outside.

'Yes,' Lily murmured from behind him. 'Not that it's anything to do with you, but - '

'Really? Had any flowers lately?' retorted Sirius with a raise of his eyebrows. Lily simply scowled again.

'Actually, he swears it wasn't him - he said his friends did it without him knowing.'

'And you believe him?' Sirius asked incredulously while they absent-mindedly climbed the marble staircase.

'So what if I do? I've known him for nearly five years, I think I have better judgement than you do,' she replied loftily.

'_Oooh_! But come on, Evans, you're really friends now? After all that? You're just going to forget it all, are you?'

'I told you, it wasn't even him! And you might disagree, but I don't care. I believe him and he's acted like a complete arse so far this year but I don't think he'd do something like that, and I'm not about to let all our fights break our friendship.' She seemed so firm when she said this that Sirius looked at her for a while in interest.

'But his friends are obviously idiots - '

'He doesn't hang around with them any more,' Lily said promptly, while Sirius snorted. '_You're_ just trying to make him sound like a bad person because you hate him so much.'

'You say it like it's a bad thing,' Sirius chuckled. Then, though he already knew about it but felt curious to see what Lily would say, he asked, 'So who _did_ send the flowers, then?'

There was a moment in which Lily sighed, thinking, and then she said, 'It was apparently that Wilkes and Rosier, you know those really horrible ones in Slytherin? Wilkes was the one coming for me - did you hear what he said?'

Sirius nodded, feeling slightly awkward. He didn't want to say the word. 'He called you a - well, you know what I mean...'

They continued walking up an empty corridor for some time. Sirius had lost count of which floor they were on; it wasn't until he spotted a familiar painting of some monks that he remembered they were on the second.

'I still can't believe he hasn't even said anything - you know, to stop them saying that. He just takes it, and he _knows_ they don't like you. No offence. He's such a cowardly little bastard.'

Lily seemed to flinch at the insult, but did not say anything. Sirius got the feeling she didn't want to talk about it, and though insulting Snape was something he greatly enjoyed, Sirius rather didn't want to talk about all the other previous events he'd had with him either.

'Get anything good for Christmas?' he asked lamely.

She stared at him as though biting back a laugh, but said nicely enough, 'Yeah, I suppose. Nothing magical from my parents, though, obviously. Just clothes mainly - and Mary got me a really good book - '

'God, don't tell me you actually _like_ getting books for Christmas?' Sirius scoffed.

She glared at him, retorting, 'No offence, but playing jokes on people and insulting them isn't my thing, so yes, I'll stick to books.'

'Suit yourself,' Sirius shrugged, 'but just so you know, playing jokes and insulting people is much more fun.'

'I'll try it some time,' Lily replied sarcastically.

'Preferably on Snape.'

'Can we stop taking about Sev, please?' Lily asked irritably.

'Okay, okay, sorry. Want to know what I got for Christmas?' he grinned.

'No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me.'

'To be honest, Evans, it wasn't that special,' Sirius said truthfully. 'Though the highlight was probably a load of soil from the house-elf.'

Lily laughed heartily; it sounded very light, and tinkling, like a fairy's. 'No more than you deserve,' she chuckled.

'You're probably right,' Sirius said, smiling too. 'I also got the most lovely present from my parents - a book on how to be a "proper pureblood". Soon as I get back to the common room I'm chucking it in the fire.'

'They seriously sent you that?' Lily asked, who seemed concerned.

'It's no bother!' Sirius assured her. 'In fact, this year's present is probably the best. In first-year when they found out I wasn't in Slytherin they sent me a used handkerchief that went berserk and bit my nose. I think it was a really old one of my Aunt Druella's, actually...'

Lily seemed to look at him with a mixture of pity and amazement on her still-flushed face. Sirius avoided her eye; he did not want to seem pitiful so that she would feel sorry for him or something equally soppy and girly.

'Well, I know what you mean about disliked relatives,' said Lily, rolling her eyes. 'Tuney's nothing compared to your parents, of course, but - '

'Tuney?' Sirius repeated curiously. It sparked a memory in Sirius's mind...the only time he'd ever heard Lily say that before was years and years ago, when they had met on the Hogwarts Express...what was it? 'Tuney hates me'...

'She's my sister,' Lily explained, wearing a grimace. 'She's OK, you know, sometimes, but she doesn't like it that I'm a witch, and - whenever I mention magic or Hogwarts she sort of looks at me like I'm - anyway, me and my sister don't get on at the best of times either.' She gave him a meaningful look as though she was trying to console him, but did not quite feel the sympathy.

'Bet you're glad you can get rid of her until the summer,' Sirius said, grinning.

'Too right,' Lily groaned.

They continued walking, their footsteps sounding extra-loud in the empty corridor now that they were silent. Sirius felt the uncomfortable awkwardness creep up on them again, and was determined to make conversation.

'So - so what time d'you reckon dinner'll be?' he asked as they clambered up a tight spiral staircase.

'Not sure, but Dirk told me it was between one and half past,' Lily replied from behind him.

They emerged onto the seventh-floor corridor, but it was again deserted and Harry could hear no sounds coming from the classrooms or corridors nearby. They were probably all still on the grounds throwing snowballs...he wondered if the others were concerned as to where he was...but then again, they were probably having too much fun to notice...

'WHEEEEEEE!'

There was a shrill voice shrieking from the corridor ahead, and Sirius didn't need to be told twice to recognize it - it was Peeves.

_'...wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!_'

'Come on, in here,' Sirius muttered, not wanting to be seen with Lily Evans by Peeves - he was the biggest gossip in the entire school, even worse than Bertha Jorkins, who was in seventh year and was the nosiest person Sirius knew. He hurried up the corridor frantically, Peeves' voice coming nearer all the time, and found a small wooden door marked 'Darkroom.' Hastily, he pushed Lily in and shut the door just in time to hear Peeves flying past the corridor beyond.

'_Good tidings we bring, to you and your king _- wheeeeeeeeeeee!'

'What an idiot,' Sirius moaned, casting his eyes around the room, which was indeed very dark. 'I would've taken a short cut but we're on the seventh floor and we're near the common room - wait, what room is this?'

'It's the dark room,' Lily explained, her voice somewhere to the right of him.

'Yeah, I worked that out for myself. What's it for?'

'Well - Muggles have darkrooms to develop photographs in, so I'm guessing this one is for wizarding photographs.'

'Bit stupid, though, isn't it? I mean, how are you supposed to know what you're doing if you can't see anything?' Sirius took out his wand and muttered, '_Lumos_,' but, to his immense surprise, nothing happened.

'What? _Lumos - _why isn't it working?'

'They've probably put enchantments on the room so that you can't cast light in here,' Lily said knowingly. 'If you let light onto the photos then they won't develop properly.'

'Oooh, get you!' Sirius said mockingly, stowing his wand back into his pocket and turning to feel his way back to the door.

'It makes sense if you think about it logically!' came a shrill reply.

'Why do we even _need_ a darkroom?' Sirius asked irritably; though his eyes had adjusted to the sudden darkness a little, he was suddenly annoyed at the fact the room was stubbornly pitch black and he wanted to get out quickly.

'Just in case, I suppose,' Lily said from nearby.

'Yeah, just in case there's a dire emergency and we need to take some photos as proof - wait - if I open the door, won't that let some light in?'

'They'll have thought of that. There's probably an enchantment on the door as well, to block the light out.'

'Really thought of everything, haven't you, Evans?' Sirius asked as he put his hands out and felt his way around the room. 'Wait - _ow_ - I just bumped into something - hey, it's you!'

'No, it isn't,' said Lily seriously from somewhere behind him.

'It's me,' said an awfully familiar voice.

A wave of panic and dread washed over him. Of all the situations to be caught in by Professor McGongall (even including the Christmas prank one), stuck in a darkroom with just Lily Evans was definitely the worst. She would assume that they were in there on purpose, having a cosy little chat; Sirius squirmed inwardly because that was exactly what it looked like.

'Hello, Professor,' Sirius began cheerfully at a brave attempt of sounding perfectly normal.

'Good afternoon, Black. And good afternoon to you, Miss Evans.'

'Hello,' Lily mumbled awkwardly.

There was a _snap_, and McGonagall's face loomed into view, illuminated by a ball of golden light she had conjured and looking all the more menacing with her face highlighted with shadows from the darkness around her.

'How'd you do that, Professor?' Sirius asked, amazed.

McGonagall ignored them. 'After sorting out the complete and utter snowball-fight-turned-disaster which involved several people with boils and five people in the hospital wing, I was informed by Miss MacDonald and Mr Potter, seperately, that they did not know where you were. Now I don't know what you were doing in here and I don't know why you thought a darkroom might be the best place to do it, but it is _very _unwise to wander off without your friends' knowledge, and even more so when you are wandering about corridors in which no teachers are present. Lucky I was passing and heard your voices, or else who knows what might have happened. It is Christmas Day, but that does _not_ mean we are less lenient on rules.'

'Professor, it was Peeves, we heard him coming - '

'Yes, Professor McGonagall, we just came in to escape from him, honestly - '

'We didn't _choose_ to go in here - '

'Whether you chose it or not, Mr Black, the fact is your friends are concerned for you, and I suggest you meet them now and never go on a walkabout again. Same for you, Miss Evans.'

The door creaked open, so that they could see the lit corridor beyond but the light did not illuminate the little darkroom; it stayed as it was, plunged into darkness save the little sphere McGonagall conjured with her wand. Sirius trooped out; Lily did the same and Professor McGonagall shut the door firmly behind her and walked away.

'That could have been _so_ much worse,' Lily sighed, shaking her head. 'Imagine if someone else had caught us!'

Sirius thought he knew who she was talking about and thoroughly agreed; had it been James, the consequences _would_ have been so much worse.

'Personally I think that went rather well,' Sirius said reasonably. 'Lucky it's Christmas Day or she would have had to give us detention.'

'_Rather well_?' Lily repeated, astounded. 'That was so embarassing! I'm a Prefect as well - '

'Yeah, so I've heard,' muttered Sirius.

'And I should've been sorting out the snowball fight when it got out of hand, that's my job, I've been so - stupid, it was so unfair for me to leave it to the teachers with enough on their mind - '

'Will you stop worrying, Evans?' Sirius snapped, rolling his eyes. 'I've been caught in much worse situations, you wouldn't believe - she got me and Hestia Jones in the Astronomy Tower - '

'Why did I even let myself go with you?' Lily asked, startled. 'I should've known you'd only get me into trouble!'

'Finally! Didn't think you'd see sense, Evans. I was wondering how you had the willpower to actually stay with me for as long as you did.'

'I'm going back to the common room!' Lily said, flaring up. 'On my own! Just leave me alone, OK?'

'Gladly.'

Lily shook her head again manically although he couldn't understand what was making her angry. Still, she didn't leave, she just stood on the spot staring at him, with one hand close to her pocket which held her wand. Sirius kept a firm grip on his wand inside his jacket pocket; he didn't think she would use it on him, but he had to be careful.

'I thought you were going?'

'I am,' she replied instantly.

Sirius raised his eyebrows.

For one wild moment he thought she was going to run at him, he thought her wand was going to be turned on him and he instinctively grabbed his own, but then he found he did not need it. She had a blazing look in her eyes as she threw her arms around him and kissed him, and Sirius kissed her back without even thinking about what he was doing. He found that he didn't seem to care whether they were seen or not, he just kissed her, as if it was normal. And it wasn't. It was _Lily Evans_.

They broke apart, and Sirius was glad to see it was just her eyes staring back into his, and not anyone else's; he had not paid much attention to anything else and someone could have screamed right next to him for all he cared.

'Well,' she mumbled.

'_Well_,' Sirius repeated, repressing a laugh.

'I'm going now,' she told him firmly. Then she turned and walked away, surprisingly steady for how dazed she seemed to look.

'Knew you couldn't resist me,' Sirius chuckled.

'Merry Christmas!' Lily shouted, without turning back, as though determined to pretend she couldn't hear him.

'Yes,' Sirius murmured, grinning and sticking his hands in his pockets as he turned to go back and find the other Marauders, 'Merry Christmas, Evans.'

**OoO**

'So...so you just left? Because Avery jinxed you, you just _left_ it?'

It was later that afternoon; they were enjoying Christmas dinner in the Great Hall and Sirius had gone down to meet the other Marauders in the Entrance Hall, with a rushed explanation of why he left the fight. He knew someone could have seen him leave with Lily, but maintained that he had been hit by a curse during the fight anyway, and left to go back to the castle until the curse wore off. It was most uncharacteristic of him to leave without getting even, but he could not think of a more plausible explanation, and telling the truth was out of the question.

'I told you,' Sirius said irritably, for what felt like the millionth time, 'it was Jelly-Legs and I knew I wasn't going to get him back, he was well into the crowd by that time and I couldn't see him. I wasn't just going to stand there and let myself get hit again, was I? So I ran back to the castle - bloody difficult it was, too, with my legs wobbling all over the sodding place - '

'You didn't have to go back to the castle!' said James through mouthfuls of roast potato. 'You could've helped us! We were in a right mess with that big ugly one - Crabbe, I think - he'd got warts all over his face from a combined hex me and Moony sent at him. He came right over to us, didn't he, Remus? Didn't think I was going to get out of it alive - course, he didn't know how good I am at Stunners. I think he's still unconscious now.' A dreamy, amused look flitted on James's face as he speared another potato.

'You should've seen Snape, though!' Remus said as he piled his plate high with second helpings of parsnip. 'He was shooting all sorts of Dark hexes all over the place...Heldus Quirke ended up having fits in the hospital wing...it was supposed to be fun, and he just ended up injuring loads of people - '

'What, and he's not even getting punishment?' Sirius asked in disbelief, shovelling some more turkey onto his plate.

'Nope,' James said, shaking his head. 'He denied it when the teachers asked him, even though they knew he'd done it because everyone told them. The Slytherins are sticking up for him, obviously, but McGonagall tried to do Priori Incantatem on his wand and he wouldn't let her. Refused to do it.'

'Which makes it obvious, really,' Remus added. 'So that was proof enough for McGonagall, even though he said the reason he wouldn't let her was because it was some sort of invasion of privacy.'

'None of the Slytherins would do it, but the rest of us had to,' said Peter sullenly. 'They didn't mind about the spells we'd cast though. None of them were illegal. But they can't prove the Slytherins cast those curses, so they can't punish them too badly.'

'Detention, at the most,' James said gloomily. 'Let-down or what?'

'I think _we_ should punish them, if the teachers can't,' Sirius said craftily, looking around at the others. 'We'll make it a special one for Snivellus.'

'Yeah, yeah, there's this new spell everyone uses, _levicorpus, _I've wanted to try it out on him for a while - '

'That must've been what got me the other day!' Peter gasped, dropping his fork. 'Parkinson held me upside down and nicked all my money...I had eight Galleons on me, too, I was saving for some Fizzing Whizzbees - '

'Parkinson's a right foul git,' Sirius said darkly, who had encountered the snobbish Slytherin seventh-year one too many times. 'He deserves every hex I've ever used on him.'

'The Impediment Jinx was the best one, remember, Padfoot?' said James with a reminiscent gleam in his eye. 'Stuck in the corridor for ages...he's Beater for Slytherin, you know, you'd better thrash him when we play them - '

'Yeah...think I'll set fire to his broom,' mused Sirius. 'No - enchant his club to make it hit _him_ instead - '

'Might get his brain cells into gear,' sniggered James. 'If he has any.'

'Doubt it,' shrugged Sirius. 'Here, Moony, pass me the carrots.'

As Sirius reached across to grab the dish from Remus, he spotted Lily sitting a couple of seats along. His stomach flipped over as he remembered their last encounter. Had he really kissed her? No, _she'd _kissed _him_. Which was even more startling. She'd never shown any signs that she'd liked him, even as a friend - she didn't bother trying to hide her feelings of dislike for him, though. But were they _really _feelings? How could you kiss someone you hated?

And what about James? What about him, sat there with a burning desire for the girl who had kissed his best friend merely hours previously? Sirius felt a pang of guilt and betrayal thinking about him, completely oblivious to all the meetings they'd had, the things they'd talked about...how could Sirius do that? How could be be so selfish?

Lily looked around, spotted him, and what looked like a smirk came across her freckled face.

'Sirius, mate? Carrots.'

'Oh - right - thanks,' Sirius said, placing the dish next to his plate, but suddenly not hungry for them any more. He sneaked a glance at Lily; she was chatting happily to Mary, seemingly enjoying her Christmas dinner as if she had forgotten about what had happened earlier. Maybe Sirius had imagined the smirk. Maybe he had imagined everything. It all just seemed too unreal, and bizarre, like finding that the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle in the box didn't actually fit the picture.

And...and it was as though he _wasn't _trying hard to forget about it, because he didn't want to. Strange though it was to have kissed Lily Evans, it felt like it was the only thing that was meant to happen, that the jigsaw piece _did_ fit if he jiggled it around a bit. He was angry, and disappointed with himself to admit it, but Lily Evans, she was...she was something else. She wasn't like any other girl he'd kissed, and he'd kissed a fair few, alright. The other girls, they were almost meaningless, they weren't even considered as girlfriends or anything like that. Nothing permanent. And it was because they were all the same; they showed that pitiful desperation and clinginess that he just couldn't stand. Evans, on the other hand - she was wickedly insulting, and fiercely independent, and witty and clever and funny and she had the shiniest hair and that smattering of freckles on her nose...

The rest of Christmas Day passed fairly normally, thankfully without any more trouble from Slytherins or hectic snowball fights. The Marauders returned to their common room having brought up a vat of hot chocolate from the kitchens, and spent the evening ladling it out to the Gryffindors whilst watching a particularly entertaining firework display in which Adam Wood's hat almost got blown off his head (to the Marauders' delight). Though Sirius pretended to be watching the sparks and stars that swirled around the common room, he was actually watching Lily, sat with Mary and eyeing the fireworks appreciatively. He had the image of her in his mind long after he went upstairs to bed.


	20. Nineteen: Resolution

_A/N: Ohohoho! They kissed! Finally! After one million chapters. Anyway here's the following chapter, about New Year's Eve and Slughorn's party. I was going to do it at Christmas but I realised I would have to put it in as soon as I'd finished the Christmassy chapters. Okay so here it is (and Maisie, I'm so glad you have an account! Welcome to FanFiction! Haha).  
><em>

**Nineteen**

**Resolution  
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The rest of Christmas went most enjoyably for Sirius. He spent his days with the Marauders throwing snowballs at unsuspecting victims under the Invisibility Cloak, and his nights roaming the wonderfully festive Hogsmeade undercover as a shaggy black dog. On top of all this blissful freedom from schoolwork, the Marauders found out that Snape was doing detention with Professor Brushforth every night for a week when the new term started, not just because of his disobedience to a teacher but because they had found out he'd been cursing other first-years before the Christmas Day snowball fight as well. The only thing that disappointed Sirius slightly was the fact that he hadn't spoken to Lily since their last meeting, and he was desperate to talk to her alone, because she'd been giving him little hidden smiles or meaningful looks every time she crossed him in the corridors. Sirius had given up speaking to her with James there; he didn't think he could bear the smug expression she gave him every time they were in James's company, and he didn't think he could bring himself to insult her now that his feelings for her were rapidly increasing.

The morning of New Year's Eve started with a piece of bad news, however. Dirk Cresswell, their fellow Gryffindor and Head Boy, was sat beside them at the breakfast table and could not help joining in on the Marauders' conversation. He was their friend, anyhow; a bit of a joker, like them, but otherwise polite and very friendly, with dark skin and a mass of curly black hair.

Remus was leafing through the _Daily Prophet _as usual, in between bites of toast.

'Merlin, listen to this,' Remus said, aghast, as he shook the paper out suddenly to read it better. 'The Ministry's arrested Romero Clearwater!'

'_What_?' Sirius said in disbelief. Romero was a bumbling, kindly old man who worked at Mulpepper's Apothecary in Diagon Alley; they visited him frequently to buy Potions supplies and knew he was never capable of committing anything illegal.

'Yeah,' said Remus, shaking his head. 'Says here he was accused of using the Imperius Curse on customers...and he was also blamed for those disappearances of that Muggle family on Charing Cross Road...why would he be blamed for that? Ridiculous!'

'That's sick!' said James, who looked horrified. 'Romero'd never do that, what the hell are the Ministry playing at?'

'Apparently loads of people gave evidence that they saw him at it,' Remus said, scanning the paper.

'Yeah, they did,' Dirk suddenly piped up, 'one of the goblins at Gringotts did.'

The Marauders turned to him, in surprise. He had been eating his bacon sandwich and chatting companionably to his friend until that moment; they had not expected him to know about it.

'_Really_?' said Peter wonderingly.

'Yeah,' shrugged Dirk. 'I don't know if what he's saying is true, though. Goblins, they're funny creatures, aren't they? But Clearwater could've been under the Imperius Curse himself - anything's possible.'

'Why would someone want to put him under the Imperius Curse, though?' said Sirius curiously.

Dirk just shrugged again, looking rather forlorn. 'Dumbledore's put loads more security on the castle since it's happened, I suppose it's reminded us that even the most innocent people can be dangerous - Slughorn almost cancelled his party, you know, he was apparently really close to Clearwater - '

'Party? What party?' said James instantly, perking up.

'His - his New Year's party,' explained Dirk. 'I heard he was really distraught this morning, but he's already invited everyone now so he can't really cancel, and Dumbledore's given the O.K - people are going to be out of their beds late which is a bit worrying but as long as a teacher's there - '

'Who's going?' James said with interest.

'A few people...erm, me, Barny, that Regulus; he's your brother, isn't he, Sirius? Er, Damocles Belby - Lily Evans - '

Sirius's heart missed a beat.

' - Alice Prewett, Bertie Higgs - '

'How come we didn't get invited?' demanded James, who was looking thoroughly offended.

'Well, it's just for Slughorn's lot, isn't it?' said Dirk, who looked uncomfortable. 'Anyway...I've got to go...see you...'

He got up and left, together with his friend Barnabus Cuffe, a Ravenclaw who was also a favourite of Slughorn's.

James continued eating, perhaps with more of a moody air than necessary.

'Can you believe it?' said James. 'Slughorn's party, and we're not invited...some decent people are going, by the looks of it...knew Evans'd be there, of course...'

Sirius's eyes dropped quickly to his fried egg.

'...well, it'd be rude not to show up, wouldn't it? What d'you reckon, eh? Marauders turning up, giving everyone a little surprise...we could use the Cloak or else the teachers might catch us out of bed...and the Map...'

'I have no plans for tonight,' said Sirius cheerily, though as he said it an image formed in his mind of he and Lily, nice and tipsy after a few Butterbeers...with James out of the way trying to muscle his way out of the adoring girls that would no doubt be with him, he could talk to her...

'Wouldn't there be a party in the common room?' asked Peter.

'Crashing Slughorn's is going to be _much_ more fun,' said James, his eyes twinkling.

'I don't know...Slughorn'd be really mad,' said Remus uneasily.

'Come on, Moony, don't ruin the fun!' cried James. 'Who wants to sit there in the common room knocking back the pumpkin juice? Apparently, Slughorn's parties are always really good - '

'Bertha Jorkins told me Morgana Pentwhistle was there last year,' Peter piped up.

'You're kidding! From the Arrows? Will she be there tonight, d'you reckon?'

'We'll only know if we turn up,' said Sirius, winking. 'Moony, come on, if people _that_ good are there, we have to go.'

'Just because she's a Quidditch player,' Remus said, shaking his head, though he was smiling. 'Okay, but if we get in trouble, I'm not taking credit for any of it.'

'Ruin his title, wouldn't it?' James said, grinning at them. 'Being a Prefect, it's like being a god...okay, we'll get down there at about eight, when people have had a couple of drinks...'

**OoO**

At a quarter to eight, the Marauders were on their way down to the dungeons from the seventh floor, well-hidden under the Invisibility Cloak and careful to avoid the corridors full of patrolling, watchful teachers. James had gotten into a fit of frustration over his hair, which he had attempted to flatten, but to no avail, and it wasn't until Sirius had said the sticking-up just-got-off-the-Quidditch-pitch look was cooler anyway had he given up. A couple of people in the common room were on their way down to the party too, having been invited as a plus-one, and James had wheedled information from a gushing fourth-year to tell them that Morgana Pentwhistle would indeed be coming again.

'Can't wait to see Reg,' moaned Sirius as they crept along a dank chamber which led to the fifth floor. 'What a lovely little New Year surprise.'

'Give him a good hex when you see him,' James advised him. 'Or tip Butterbeer on his head. Or both.'

'You shouldn't provoke him!' Remus said worriedly. 'After he found out about - you know - '

'He hasn't said anything, though, has he?' James said reasonably.

'Wonder why,' Sirius pondered. 'Probably thinks he'll get into trouble for telling everyone, I bet. That's the sort of git he is - he won't do anything until he's found out what's in it for him, and if Dumbledore knows and he's letting you in school, Moony, then he's probably realised it's best not to bother.'

'I hope so,' said Remus bracingly. 'I'm just trying to forget about it, really - '

'That's it!' said James loudly, causing a woman in a painting next to them to jump, having not seen the source of the noise. 'Make _him _forget - a Memory Charm!'

'_Brilliant_ - except none of us have actually ever _done_ a Memory Charm,' said Sirius, refraining from rolling his eyes.

'That doesn't matter, does it, if his memory goes a bit weird?' said James, chuckling. 'No, no, seriously, we can just modify his memory and make him forget everything.'

'Not in front of an entire room full of people?' Peter said confusedly.

'Nah, Wormy, I mean a bit later on - we can practise first. Not tonight. But we could do it, couldn't we?' James said eagerly.

'I suppose, if we made it strong enough,' mused Sirius. 'Because he could remember, at any random time, if it isn't done properly - '

'Yeah, yeah,' said James with a wave of his hand. 'Right, we're almost at Slughorn's office...let's take the Cloak off.'

They shrugged the Cloak off themselves; James stowed it away under his shirt and Remus, who was holding the map, tapped it and said, 'Mischief managed,' to wipe it blank. They had decided not to walk across the Entrance Hall to reach the dungeons, feeling that it would be too heavily protected with security spells, and had instead taken a shortcut along a narrow secret passage to get to the Potions corridor. They could hear the sounds of lively chatter and upbeat music coming from Slughorn's office. A dozen or so people were already making their way to the party; it was easy to blend in with them and the Marauders followed the violet carpet and string of fairy lights to find the open doors of the party scene.

Slughorn's office was more spacious than Sirius had expected; though he had been in trouble and sent to various professors' offices several times, he had never been inside Slughorn's before. The ceiling was draped with purple, silver and gold hangings so that it appeared as if they were in some kind of carnival tent, and there were also several chiffony curtains at the windows and golden balloons trailing silver ribbons suspended in mid-air, together with hundreds of purple paper lanterns. The room was alive with laughter and chatting, and also fairly crowded considering it was only early. An immense silver banner was pinned to the far wall reading '_HAPPY NEW YEAR_' in purple lettering, and a clock which seemed to be made of individual white specks was revolving slowly over everyone's heads, at the ceiling in the centre of the room. A huge gramophone beside Slughorn's desk, which was draped in golden material and laden with platters full of fancy food, blared out some outdated jazz-band music to the crowd.

'All a bit too much for a party, if you ask me,' Sirius muttered to James beside him, who agreed. Sirius could just make out the enormous frame of Slughorn at the far side of the room, immersed in conversation with two important-looking warlocks wearing blue robes and smoking pipes.

'There's Reg,' said James, who pointed him out to the other Marauders. His hair was smoothed back and he was with Semima Nott, a snotty third-year who was evidently his plus-one. Sirius noticed with amusement that she was not as attractive as he had first thought, with a rather scowly face and a long, thin neck. They were both laughing scathingly at the house-elves who were tottering about the partygoers with silver platters held high above their heads.

Sirius made a snort of disgust. 'I hope the house-elves spill food all over him.'

'Wonder if Sneazle's here,' mused James. 'Hey look, is that - is that Morgana?'

Sirius glanced over in the direction James had indicated; a tall and attractive witch with long black hair was standing a few feet away, laughing with a short, stout wizard whom Sirius recognized vaguely as someone he'd seen in the _Daily Prophet_.

'That's Eldred Worple, he's just started at the Commitee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, hasn't he?' Remus said.

'Has he?' said James, who appeared not to be listening and was instead watching Morgana carefully.

'Yeah...he's just been recruited because of all the attacks that have happened recently,' explained Remus knowledgeably. 'He managed to persuade a vampire to stop going for this seventy year-old woman, I think...'

'I'm going over there,' said James promptly, grabbing a sandwich from a platter which wormed its way over to them. 'Think I can get an autograph, if I'm lucky...'

Sirius took advantage of Remus and Peter getting preoccupied by the wide variety of sandwiches to choose from, and melted amongst a couple of dancing Ministry witches to get deeper into the crowd. He knew who he was looking for...if he could just find her...

Regulus gave him a dirty look as he passed, but he took no notice, grabbing a glass of nettle wine from a silver tray and sipping appreciatively; the room was stuffy and full of loud people. Finally, after pushing his way rather impatiently past a gaggle of gossipy girls who gasped at the sight of him, he spotted the long red hair, and sidled over to her, tapping her shoulder.

'Evans.'

She'd been engaged in conversation with Dirk Cresswell; his mouth gaped open when he saw Sirius, given that he had not been invited, but he shrugged and moved away fairly quickly, deciding that he wouldn't have expected anything less of a Marauder.

'Who invited _you_?' Lily said rather snobbishly, but a smile played across her lips as she said it. Sirius could not help taking note of how pretty she looked; her magnificent coppery hair was set in soft waves and she was wearing a floaty, pale gold dress with gold shoes, together with a pair of emerald earrings which exactly matched her eyes.

'Now, now, just because the spell's illegal, doesn't mean you can't cast it,' said Sirius with a wink, wagging a finger in mock reproval.

Lily just laughed. 'Slughorn seems in a good mood tonight, so he'll probably let you stay. Unfortunately,' she added.

'You seem to have gone off me a bit, considering you kissed me,' said Sirius lightly with another cheeky grin.

Lily's playful smile faltered a bit, but she hitched it back again, staring at the ground as though determined not to look at him.

'I thought you'd have forgotten about that by now,' she said, suddenly looking up at him from under her eyelashes.

'Why, have you?'

Lily did not reply, but merely took another sip of her drink.

'_I _certainly haven't - talk about taking the man by surprise,' said Sirius as he nabbed a sausage roll bobbing towards him.

Lily looked rather satisfied as she swilled her drink in its glass, but did not say any more on the subject. 'Where are the others?' she asked.

'James is somewhere over there,' Sirius said, pointing vaguely in the direction of Morgana and her companion. 'He's trying to talk to Morgana Pentwhistle. Not to worry, he'll be preoccupied with her for a while, so he won't notice us.' He grinned down at her, but she did not return it, instead looking rather concerned.

'And Remus and Peter?'

'Probably seeing how much food they can nick. It's alright, Evans, no-one's _seen_ us.' He downed the rest of his drink quickly, rolling his eyes.

'Oh, I wasn't concerned for _you_,' said Lily with a touch of coldness. 'I was thinking more of yourself. I'm surprised you're even standing here next to me; I mean, it might tarnish your reputation.'

'As if you'd think I'm that superficial!' replied Sirius in mock outrage. 'I happen to _only_ be seen in the company of well-respected ladies - '

'Hestia Jones?' Lily interrupted with a snort. 'Classy.'

'She's quite decent,' shrugged Sirius. 'The most decent, anyway, out of all the girls I've - '

'Oh, please, spare me the details of your love life, Black,' Lily said loftily.

'If you insist,' Sirius sighed. Then, noticing their glasses were empty, he pulled out his wand and offered to refill them. In an instant they were both sipping Daisyroot draught, and swaying slowly to the patchy music still blaring through the gramophone. It wasn't until some time later that Sirius met Slughorn himself; he had hoped to avoid it, but supposed it was inevitable judging by the way he was combing every inch of the room trying to find his old friends, and Sirius did not have time to hide or escape.

'Not at all, Belby, not at all - ah, Sirius, lad! What a, er, pleasant surprise...I don't think...who invited you, m'boy? Not lovely Lily here, eh? I didn't think you were...well...'

'I actually wasn't invited, Professor, but I thought I'd show up anyway to bring my best wishes to you for New Year,' Sirius said cheerily.

'Well then, what harm can it do?' said Slughorn genially, who was red in the face and looked as though he'd had one too many glasses of mead. 'Stay, Sirius, then, if you must...I daresay you're not alone? Got your friends with you, have you?'

'Yes, Professor, they're just back there,' Sirius said, indicating the area in which James was still busy trying to get Morgana's attention and Remus and Peter were talking to a Hufflepuff fifth-year called Alice Prewett and her boyfriend, a Gryffindor sixth-year Frank Longbottom.

'Well, I'll just say hello...yes, I think James is talking to dear Morgana over there, bless him, I'll introduce him...' Slughorn clapped Sirius on the back, gave Lily a toothy beam and made his way through the tight crowd, roaring out his old aquaintances' names as he did so.

'He's one for parties, isn't he?' observed Sirius pleasantly, turning back to Lily. 'Although I bet you're not enjoying this one very much - parties aren't really the most joyful experiences for you, are they?'

'I knew you'd bring that up - stop laughing!' said Lily, who looked annoyed though she could not stop giggling herself. 'No, Merlin only knows how I managed to face him again after that. I'm hoping he doesn't come over here, drunk off his face and hoping for another kiss at twelve o'clock.'

'Knowing James, he will do,' chuckled Sirius. 'Either that, or he'll end up trying to snog Morgana - and God knows how that'll turn out.'

Lily made a face. 'He deserves whatever he gets.'

'Ah, Evans, don't be like that, it's New Year's Eve! Try and pay him one compliment. Go on.'

'How come you're so eager for me to like him when _you're_ the one that kissed me?' said Lily, her brow furrowed.

'_You_ kissed _me_, actually,' Sirius corrected her.

'You kissed me back,' Lily said evenly. Then she smiled rather mischieviously. 'Wait, are you feeling _guilty_? Do you want me to like James because he's your best friend? And you betrayed him, you kissed me!'

'D'you have to say it so loud?' said Sirius irritably. 'And I already told you. _You_ started the kiss. And I've been trying to figure out why the sodding hell you did it this past week, actually, after maintaining for over four years that you thought I was about as worthy as scum - '

'I never said that,' said Lily sharply. 'And as a matter of fact, no, I didn't like you, but can you blame me? It's only this past four months that I've actually talked to you properly, and realised that you're _not_ just the macho man that you make out to be - '

'And I realised you're not the boring, swotty Lily Evans that _you _make out to be,' said Sirius, looking right into her eyes. He wasn't sure if they were arguing or not, but the fact was, he had just spotted Remus and thought that now would perhaps be a good time to leave before he and Peter caught him. So, he made his exit as effective as possible. 'And I've talked to you until the early hours, made you break your bloody ankle, saved your life, given you lasagne, and kissed you, and I never thought I'd do any of those things, especially the lasagne, but there you are.'

He left her standing there, trying to keep his eyes focused on the chattering crowd around him, but his head was swimming and he'd drank mead and wine and various other drinks since arriving, and so his senses weren't quite as accurate as he'd like them to be. Thankfully, Remus and Peter weren't far away; standing together amid a throng of tall, bearded warlocks, they appeared not to notice his unsteadiness as he approached them.

'Where've you been?' said Peter. 'They've got _amazing _food - we saved some treacle tart for James because he's been over there with Morgana since we arrived.'

'Still no luck?' asked Sirius, preferring not to answer his question.

'Nope,' Remus said, looking amused. 'She's not really taking any notice of him, but he's been following her around begging for an autograph.'

'That doesn't surprise me,' said Sirius, batting a floating balloon out of his way.

'I think we should go,' said Remus tentatively. 'There's not really anyone we know here, is there?'

'Have you met Slughorn yet?'

'Yes, and he said we could stay, but I'm not sure, I think I might just go back up to the common room.'

Sirius made a face. 'Fine, if you want to be a boring sod. I'll stay with James though - I don't think he's going until he's got that autograph.'

'But what about the countdown?' said Peter fretfully with his hands full of little pies and snacks.

'It's only ten o'clock,' said Remus, glancing at his watch. 'We'll come back down a bit later. We can say hello to the others in the common room, OK?'

'Tell them Happy New Year from me,' said Sirius as he watched Remus and Peter part the crowds, making their way to the doors. Though he wanted to be with them instead of stuck with a drooling James, a part of him could not deny the excitement that two of his friends were out of the way...if he could just make sure James was still distracted by midnight...

**OoO**

The countdown to the 1st of January, 1976 was drawing nearer.

James had given up on Morgana and was instead surrounded by a usual gaggle of gossipy girls, totally oblivious to the fact that Remus and Peter had now gone and Sirius was with the girl he liked. James had been approached by the manager of Puddlemere United a while earlier, though, who had told him to consider playing Quidditch professionally and this had lifted his mood. Sirius had only spent half an hour with him; the girls flitting around them were interested in Sirius, too, but he couldn't stand the way they gushed over him even if he acted like he could - there was only one person he wanted to talk to.

The whole room started chanting when the last ten seconds of the year started.

'Ten! Nine!'

'Looks like the countdown's begun, Evans,' muttered Sirius; the sparkling silver clock was now flashing purple.

'Eight! Seven!'

Neither Sirius or Lily joined in the countdown; they simply stood, looking at each other intently as though determined to win a staring contest.

'Six! Five! Four!'

'It's almost 1976,' Sirius reminded her.

'Really? I'd never have guessed,' she replied with raised eyebrows.

'_Three_!'

'Made your resolution yet, Evans?'

'_Two_!'

'Sorry?'

'_ONE! HAPPY NEW YEAR!_'

The room erupted in an explosion of cheers, yelps and ecstatic roars; silver and gold streamers burst from the clock, along with a mound of glitter which rained down upon them all, and made the office look as though it was alight with stars; real fairies flew among the muddle of celebration, casting more light upon the scene; the air was full of exuberant 'Happy New Year's at once.

'Happy New Year,' Lily said, who could not help laughing as she tipped her glass to his. Streamers and glitter had nested in her hair, she picked them out carefully.

'Happy New Year, Evans,' he said, grinning broadly. His eyes swept the room for Remus, Peter and James, hoping to see them and wish them a Happy New Year too - but he couldn't see them through the dense fog and mass of people, which all of a sudden seemed to increase in number ever since the New Year was announced.

'What were you saying?' Lily asked loudly, having to raise her voice over the din.

'Oh - er - have you made a New Year's resolution?'

'To...to never talk to you again, because a broken ankle is all that sodding comes out of it!' Lily laughed. 'What about you?'

'Oh, it's not worth telling you, Evans,' Sirius grinned, picking a streamer out of her hair which she had missed. 'Besides, I've broken it already.'

And he leaned down to kiss her.


	21. Twenty: The ComeAndGo Room

_A/N: Hey guys! This is chapter twenty. I hope you like it. It gets a bit weird towards the end. I'm not very good at writing those real shocker cliffhangers. Anyway, I thought I'd let you know that we've almost reached the end of the fic. I'm really sorry if you were hoping it would go on and they'd have a proper relationship type-thing and I realise now that they've been a bit slow to realise that they like each other so the first dozen chapters are mainly Sirius/Lily gabble, and I'm sorry. I decided to think about how Sirius would truly deal with it and understand him as a character (that sounds so deep, haha) and I know he's a bit of a daredevil but he does some thinking about his loyalties and stuff, and, anyway, this is the chapter. Enjoy._**  
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><p><strong>Twenty<strong>

**The Come-and-Go Room  
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Snow was still falling gently against the high, mullioned windows of Hogwarts by the time everyone returned to lessons after the New Year. In a way, Sirius was filled with relief; with all the mishap and events that the Christmas holidays had brought, it was good to get back to a routine and some kind of order (even if it did mean having to endure lessons with Professor Trelawney once more).

McGonagall informed the Marauders of their detention for the Christmas Eve pandemonium after their Transfiguration class on the Monday morning. Since it was a double detention, it lasted twice as long as usual, which meant that whatever tiresome task they were set was bound to be all the more difficult and boring. Sirius was to help Professor Souriant clean the tanks in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom that night from seven o'clock onwards, which he considered reasonably good for a detention; Souriant was controlling and rather bossy, but his lessons were nonetheless interesting and enjoyable. They were also learning powerful anti-jinxes in addition to their studies on dangerous sea creatures, which Sirius found to be most handy in case any particularly malicious Slytherins made attempts to sabotage members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. They had begun to practice again in preperation for their next match against Ravenclaw, and the Slytherins were determined to put players out of action in order to make it easier for them to win the Cup.

'Can you believe it?' asked James, completely startled and annoyed as the four of them left the classroom for break. 'I've got to wash out all the used cauldrons in the store cupboard for Potions, _and _measure out the mongoose blood for the Polyjuice Potion we have to make tomorrow! For _everyone_ in the class!'

Sirius roared with laughter whilst James scowled.

'_I_ have to clean the Owlery,' said Peter miserably. 'And McGonagall's supervising.'

'What about you, Moony?' Sirius asked.

'Oh, I've got to de-Chizpurfle the Crups and then give them a bath,' said Remus rather carelessly. 'The ones that Professor Kettleburn's breeding.'

'That's easy!' James said, looking scandalised. 'They're Crups, aren't they, they're not bloody dragons! They're not even dangerous - '

'I don't mind,' Remus shrugged.

'She lets you have it easy because you're a Prefect,' James grumbled. '_All _the cauldrons...take me ages..._and _the mongoose blood...'

They left James to his moaning for the rest of the day, and when seven o'clock approached, each of the Marauders set out of the common room unwillingly: James, down to the dungeons; Remus, outside to the outskirts of the Forest, accompanied by Professor Kettleburn; and Peter and Sirius upstairs to the Owlery and the Defence Against The Dark Arts corridor.

'Ah, ,' said Souriant pleasantly, when he entered Souriant's classroom. 'Had a good first day back?'

'Yeah, it was alright,' Sirius shrugged, taken aback by the kindly nature Souriant showed outside of lessons.

'Good, good...right, well, the Kappas need cleaning out and you'll need to feed over there...I've got some more Freshwater Plimpies as well, you can add them to the tank over by the desk...yes, that one - oh, and I've just had this imported from India, I was planning to show you in our next lesson - '

After Souriant had finished indicating the various tanks and bowls in which several absurd-looking sea creatures resided, he shuffled over to a square tank hidden by a green cloth. Souriant peeled back the material to reveal a large, bright silver fish drifting in the ebb of the water.

'You see?' he whispered enthusiastically. 'It's a Ramora, they're highly valued fish found in the Indian Ocean...he's just sleeping, there, look, I didn't want to wake him...but they're abnormally strong, you know, they have the power to anchor sea vessels...oh yes...'

Sirius peered at the fish, which, apart from the unnaturally bright silver glow it was giving off, looked rather ordinary.

'Er - looks interesting,' he said, because he couldn't think of anything else.

Souriant beamed. 'Well, you know where everything is, I suppose, so there's not much for me to say except get started. There's a small bucket of fish for the Grindylow, just drop them in, see, but don't let him grab your fingers or the fellow won't let go! Now, I have to do this, it's standard procedure, I hope you won't mind - if I could just have your wand - '

Reluctantly, Sirius pulled his wand from his pocket and handed it over. He had hoped that Souriant would forget or be lenient on him, judging by his cheerful greeting, but he was left disappointed. Souriant took his wand carefully and drifted behind a heavy wooden door to what Sirius supposed was his office.

Now that he was alone, the classroom seemed much more sinister, with all the absurd creatures watching him from their seperate tanks, but he ploughed on with his detention anyway, feeling that the sooner he got it done, the sooner he could finish it. He saw that the large tank which usually housed a couple of Kappas was empty, and instead a layer of green muck covered the inside of the glass. Trying hard not to look at the sludgy scum he was scrubbing away, Sirius washed out the tank, filled it with water from the stone basin in one corner of the classroom and then took the bucket with the apparently unconscious Kappas in it and plopped them back in the clean tank. He had learned all about them from Souriant and knew that a good Stunning Spell was in order when you were dealing with the scaly monkey-like creatures; they fed off human blood.

Sirius amused himself for a while reading all the information posters pinned up on the walls while he added three new Freshwater Plimpies to their spherical bowl. There was also a miniature skeleton model of a dragon which flew around the room and skimmed the top of his head once or twice. Now that Sirius was in the room by himself, he realised he had never fully appreciated just how many interesting artefacts were stored within it; he saw higgledy-piggledy potion bottles labelled 'Dragon Blood Sample: Ukranian Ironbelly' and 'Mooncalf Milk: DO NOT DRINK'; dusty leather-backed volumes with complicated names he could not understand; and strange stone tablets with ancient rune carvings enscribed upon them. In no time at all it seemed, the creatures were taken care of, all of them shut away safely and fed in their tanks, and Sirius washed his hands gratefully in the basin before knocking tentatively on Souriant's door.

'Come in,' said the pleasant voice; Sirius entered to see him sat behind a magnificent mahogany desk with curled wooden serpents for legs.

'I've finished, sir,' Sirius said rather pointedly. 'So can I go now?'

'Yes, yes, of course!' replied Souriant, rising from his chair and handing Sirius his wand back. 'Do you know, I was just taking a look at it...fine old wand you've got there, Mr. Black.'

Sirius pocketed his wand and stared up at Souriant curiously. 'You know a bit about wands, then, Professor?' he asked.

'Well, I wouldn't say so, no, but I did do an apprenticeship at Ollivander's some time ago...about the time when I left Hogwarts.'

'Really?' asked Sirius, surprised. He wouldn't have thought Souriant was the type of person to work closely with wands, somehow. He had never considered that wandlore could actually be a career, despite the fact that he'd visited Ollivander's wandmakers twice before.

'Certainly,' said Souriant, nodding wisely. 'I learned some time later that it wasn't for me, of course, but some aspects of wandlore have not failed to escape my memory all these years. Sycamore, is it? And unicorn hair...12 inches.'

'Yeah, it is,' said Sirius, who was now utterly surprised. Somehow, it made him feel slightly more vulnerable to know that someone else had been studying his wand and identifying it.

'Yes, yes,' Souriant said, beaming. 'You'll find sycamore wood makes for particularly ambitious partners. Eager to learn, I believe, is old sycamore.'

Sirius was a little taken aback by this pronouncement and wondered whether Souriant was speaking truthfully or spouting nonsense.

'Right,' said Sirius eventually. 'Well, I'll just go then.'

'Goodnight!'

Sirius could feel Souriant watching him as he closed the door shut and hurried out of the classroom. He wasn't carrying a watch, so he had no idea what time it was, but he hoped the others would be done with their detentions. He certainly felt as though he was breaking the rules as he sauntered along the corridors with his hands stuck in his pockets. The whole place seemed slightly eerie; he kept a firm grip on his wand as he made his way, quicker than usual, up winding staircases to the common room.

Suddenly, as he shut a clanging wooden door behind him and turned for the seventh-floor corridor, there were hurried footsteps drawing nearer and a gasp.

'What are _you_ doing here?' Sirius and Lily said together.

Lily was still wearing her school robes; her face was alert and surprised and her wand was drawn. She was the first to speak afterwards.

'I'm on patrol,' she said haughtily, lowering her wand. 'You?'

'I got detention,' Sirius shrugged.

Lily looked as though she was about to laugh, but decided against it at the last moment; instead she settled for a nod. 'Right. I'm guessing the others did too?'

'Yeah, Remus has had to do his with Professor Kettleburn,' Sirius explained; he must not have completed his detention yet, or Lily would not be alone.

'So shouldn't you be back in your common room?' she teased, swishing her wand playfully.

'I _was_ on my way, before I was interrupted,' Sirius told her, grinning.

'Off you go then.'

'I can't let you walk the corridors on your own!' Sirius gasped, looking offended. 'Anything could happen.'

'Edgar Bones is doing them with me,' Lily said, referring to the Hufflepuff Prefect. 'He's downstairs.'

'Oh, _Edgar_'s doing them with you, is he?' taunted Sirius. 'Lovely.'

'Yes, not that I bloody want him to. I can do just fine on my own,' Lily replied, shaking her head.

'Evidently.' He had not realised how close they were standing; he could count the freckles on her nose and see himself reflected in her wide, glassy eyes.

'I should go and meet him,' Lily murmured as Sirius twirled her hair around his finger.

'You should.'

'I will,' Lily whispered as he kissed her.

'You know, I've been thinking,' Sirius said after they broke apart, 'we've got to stop meeting in corridors like this. Not exactly the most secretive place - '

'You don't want James to see us,' Lily said, nodding rather disappointedly. 'I know.'

'You shouldn't either!' Sirius told her as he pushed a strand of her hair from her eyes. 'Can you imagine how he'd react?'

'Only too well,' Lily replied flatly. 'So I'm just supposed to put up with seeing you in classes when you act like an idiot in front of your friends, is that it?'

'You're secretly impressed,' Sirius teased, grinning. 'Meet me here tomorrow at midnight, OK? I have somewhere in mind where we can go without being in danger of getting interrupted.'

He kissed the top of her nose, then sauntered away feeling extremely satisfied. 'And be careful, Evans,' he added without turning back.

**OoO**

Meeting with Lily was all Sirius could think about for the rest of that night and the following morning. At first he was excited about the prospect of sneaking out and roaming the school for a purpose other than causing mischief - this was something entirely different. But then, every time he saw James grinning cheerfully or stealing a quick glance at Lily only to smile wistfully, he began to regret it. The familiar sickly guilt was starting to overpower him again, so much so that he could hardly concentrate, and most of the time he found himself lost in a raging conflict between forgetting everything that had happened between he and Lily and coming clean to James in order to suffer the punishment, whatever it might be (Sirius suspected that it would mean a termination of their friendship, and though he probably deserved it, he could not bear to go through that again).

There was also the possibility that he might even carry on the little secret meetups and kisses he was sharing with Lily; he was secretly enjoying them much more than he would have thought possible, and every time he saw Lily in classes he suffered from a burning desire to have her eyes right upon his. But on the other hand, he didn't think the whole thing was likely to continue - he supposed Lily only liked him just for the excitement it offered and in a way it was the same for Sirius...the fact that she was completely out of bounds for Sirius made it that much harder to resist her. He was never one for commitment anyway - who said he would continue feeling like this forever? No, it was bound to end soon...he should perhaps end it before she did...that way, he wouldn't look like the idiot...it was going to be difficult, but he wasn't going to show it...he couldn't show it...couldn't let her know how vulnerable she made him feel...those _eyes_...

At half past eleven, Sirius lay wide awake in bed with the hangings pulled around his four-poster. He was fully dressed, and had the Marauder's Map pulled out in front of him - he had sneaked it from James's trunk when he was preoccupied in the bathroom. He couldn't have fallen asleep even if he wasn't about to meet Lily. He looked forward to seeing her, but he had a good idea of how the meeting was going to end, if all went as planned, and no matter how much he tried to surpress it from his mind he could not deny that it was growing on him, and it was probably the best thing to do. When the Ravenclaw Prefects had deserted the seventh-floor corridor, having finished their patrols, to retreat back to their common rooms, Sirius watched Lily Evans' dot closely until he saw it move slowly towards the portrait hole. He waited until she was close to the spot where they had spoken the previous day, and then crept out of bed; he did not want to look desperate by arriving first. He cast the Muffliato Charm on the rest of the dormitory so that they would not wake up at his shuffling footsteps, and then, watching the Map carefully all the while, he crept downstairs and across the dark common room.

She looked positively relieved to see him when he reached his destination; she, too, was fully dressed and had her arms wrapped around herself protectively.

'Are you going to tell me what this is about?' she hissed, fixing her penatrative gaze on him.

'All in good time, Miss Evans,' Sirius muttered. He took her hand, and led her up the corridor and around the corridor, going in the opposite direction to the Fat Lady's portrait.

They reached a tapestry of a dozen or so dancing trolls, and a stretch of blank wall.

'What's this?' she asked confusedly.

'The Room of Requirement,' Sirius told her. If she was surprised or impressed, she hid it well. It was a good thing that the Room of Requirement was so easily distinguishable by the troll tapestry; the Marauders weren't able to plot it on the Map somehow, to which James had said wisely that it was probably because the Room was Unplottable.

'I've heard of it,' Lily said slowly. 'But I've never been in it before...'

'I have,' Sirius shrugged. 'Loads of times. Mostly from when I was hiding from Filch - or one time when I stole a set of Gobstones and hid them in here. I need to get them back, come to think of it...right, stand back.'

Lily did so, expecting him to perform some kind of magic trick. Instead, though, he walked up and down the stretch of wall three times, closing his eyes and chanting inside his head. _I need a place for Lily and I to stay...I need a place for Lily and I to stay..._

Sirius opened his eyes. An arched, wide wooden door had popped into being, looking extremely inviting.

'Shall we?' Sirius said, swinging the door open and indicating that they should go inside.

'Impressive,' Lily said, raising her eyebrows as she walked past him into the Room; Sirius followed.

He had been rather hesitant to go into the Room in case it had materialised into some sort of love nest with a heart-shaped bed and pink confetti everywhere. To his relief, it looked rather like one of the disused Muggle dance studios that he often saw on the High Street of London: it was a large, open room with floor-length mirrors on the far wall, and a couple of bookcases along with two squashy, mismatched armchairs.

'This isn't what it always looks like, is it?' Lily said wonderingly, gazing around the Room. 'I read in _Secrets of Hogwarts _that it appears as something different depending on what you asked for...'

'Pretty much,' said Sirius as he flopped into an armchair.

'Hey - what's that?' Lily said sharply. She walked over to him and pulled out a large square piece of parchment that was peeking out from beneath his shirt - the Marauder's Map. Sirius struggled to get it back, but she had firm grasp of it and flicked it deftly away from his reach.

'Evans, it's just parchment, relax.'

'That you were keeping under your shirt?' Lily said sceptically. She was examining the folded blank pages of the Map with interest. 'What _is_ this?'

Sirius considered perhaps telling her a lie, but decided against it; he'd let her know about a million other personal things - did this one matter?

'Alright, Evans,' Sirius sighed. 'I'm breaking another Marauder's honour here but - it's a map. The Marauder's Map.'

'The what?' Lily asked at once.

'Remus, Peter, James and I - _mostly_ James and I - invented it. It's a map of Hogwarts. Most useful thing we've ever put work towards,' he added, flashing Lily a grin.

'This is what you were telling me about, isn't it?' Lily said knowledgeably, nodding. 'Ages ago, in Hogsmeade. The thing you invented, and you said it was really good - '

'And I wasn't lying,' Sirius chuckled. 'That thing is a complete life-saver, honestly. I don't know how we ever coped without it.'

'It's just a map,' Lily said blankly.

'Just a map?' repeated Sirius, looking scandalised. 'It's much, much more than a map. It shows you where every single person inside Hogwarts is, and what they're doing, every single minute of every single day.'

Lily frowned as though trying to make sense of the concept. Then she looked as though she was about to smirk, like the idea was laughable. Then...her mouth suddenly dropped right open when she noticed the straight-faced expression that Sirius was wearing.

'You're - you're not kidding?' she stammered, flabbergasted. 'Every single - _every_ single person? In Hogwarts? You can see them? You're serious?'

'Why yes, I'm Sirius. Sirius Black,' said Sirius pleasantly, holding out a hand as if they had just met.

Lily smirked, her eyes rolling. 'Not like I haven't heard that one before. No, no...honestly, are you being - '

'Yes, Evans, I said so, didn't I?' replied Sirius, amused at her disbelief. 'Come here - '

He took the Map from her, and took out his wand. 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good,' he declared.

Instantly, the Marauder's Map came to life; inky black lines spread across the parchment, forming corridors and stairways, and hundreds little black dots appeared, bobbing along in some places or else stationary in beds.

'_Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers, are proud to present the Marauder's Map_,' Lily recited, her eyes scanning the green writing at the top of it. 'Oh my God...this is amazing...look! I can see Filch, he's on the third-floor corridor with Mrs Norris...'

'Yep.'

'And...wait, where are we?'

'The Room isn't plottable on the Map,' Sirius explained rather forlornly. 'We tried, but we just couldn't...'

'This is how you found out it was Sev sending me flowers, isn't it?' she said, looking up at him.

'You mean trying to kill you? Yeah.'

Lily gave him a dark look. 'I _told _you. It was his friends - '

'Yeah, yeah. Course he's going to say that, isn't he?'

Lily seemed to ponder this for a moment, and, indeed, it looked like she was going to say something, but then she refrained from doing so and continued looking at the Map.

'I thought you were lying when you said you'd made something brilliant, you know,' Lily said seriously, tracing the lines and ink trails upon the parchment.

'Charming!' Sirius muttered.

Lily laughed again. 'Wait,' she said all of a sudden, sounding alarmed, 'we're on the seventh floor, aren't we?'

'Yes,' replied Sirius at once, following the flowing lines of the map to see if he could make out the corridor beyond the Room.

'Look,' Lily said sharply, 'Look who's outside.'

She pointed a finger at the corridor Sirius had been searching for; there was someone drifting around outside it...someone pacing up and down, an exact distance both ways...

'Snape,' Sirius snarled.


End file.
